Jean Lee

The last woman hung in Australia

The figure of the fallen women, the good time girl has been around for centuries. Societies
fascination with youth, beauty, prostitution, desire and deviance is continually seen in
literary narratives and news articles depicting supposed good girls that turn bad. This
fascination may be though societies wish to understand how one becomes deviant or
through the hope of redemption for the fallen woman. Jean Lee was a beautiful young
woman, a mother, a wife and for a while the epidemy of feminine 1950 ideals. Marjorie
Maude Wright was the last woman executed in Australia, she along with Robert Clayton and
Norman Andrews murdered 73-year-old William Kent.

pg. 1
Jean Lee wasnt like most women of her era; she was intelligent beautiful and used her
sexuality to her advantage. While the events of her early adult years help shape her into the
woman she became and ultimately lead to her death, she was also her own woman living
under the power of abusive men. There was little sympathy for Lees situation, only
condemnation of her acts and not causes behind them. To the media and the public Jean
Lee was the good time girl gone bad, the fallen woman turned murderess.
Jean Lee had what was considered a good childhood. She was the youngest child, intelligent
and beautiful. She was spoilt by her parents, hardworking at both school and in
employment. Lee was considered rebellious and spirited. Things didnt begin to change until
she left school in 1933 and even more when she married. Questions arose about what
turned Jean Lee into a criminal and murderess. This essay will look at the factors which lead
to her death. It will be argued that the string of abusive men that where in her life
attributed to her criminality and that she was judged because of her gender. Jean Lee did
attribute to William Kents death however she did not kill him, the articles during the period
after the crime focused on the fact that Lee was a beautiful woman, a good time girl, never
looking at the factors behind the beautiful faade.

The Crime
On November 7th 1949 Jean Lee, Norman Andrews and
Robert David Clayton brutally murdered 73-year-old
William Pop Kent in his room at a Carlton boarding
house. Kent had been lured back to his room by the
advances of Lee. This was part of a well-practised scam
known as badger game. The premise of the scam was
that Lee would lure men back to their rooms with the
promise of sex.
Just after they arrived, Clayton would barge into the
room acting as an angry husband with Andrews was in
tow acting as extra mussel. Here the three would extort
Figure 1, 50 Dorrit Street Carlton money from the unsuspecting men.
On the 7th of November, the three attempted to perform this scam on Kent. Problems arose
however when Lee tried to take Kents wallet from his pocket he fought back. This led to a
violent confrontation which finished with William Kents death.
Kent was beaten and tortured for over an hour and then manually strangled to his death.
His nose was found to be broken, as was his larynxii. Kents hands tied behind his back, his
thumbs bound by shoelaces and there were cigarette burns on his chest. His room was
found in disarray, his belongings ransacked and money stolen.

pg. 2
 Figure 2, Jean Lee, police identity photographs

When questioned the three gave conflicting statements to the police. It was however
discovered that the three tortured Kent for over an hour trying to determine where he kept
his stash of money. This supposed money was the reason Kent was targeted. Kent though
did not have a stash of money; this was only a rumour. When Kent didnt disclose the
location of the money the three became angry and the violence escalated, this led to his
deathiii.
Jean Lee pleaded her innocence throughout her trial repeatedly declaring that she was a
bystander and had not participated in Kents murder. This plea fell on deaths ears, on the
25th of March 1950 the supreme court found Jean Lee, Robert Clayton and Norman Andrews
guilty of the murder of William Kent and was sentenced to death by hanging. Lee appealed
her convicted and was granted an appeal, this decision was overturned by the high court iv.
Jean Lee was not the one that strangled Kent to death, she believed that because of this fact
she was innocent. She pleaded that a woman should not be hung and begged for mercy.

Lees conviction and sentence was not without controversy. On the 18th of December 1950,
there was a motion to change Lees sentence on the grounds of mercy because Lee was a
woman. This was introduced by the Labor party and the Victorian prison reform and the
Victorian prison reform associationv. A senior Cabinet minister was quoted as saying that he
would ask for the reprieve for Jean Lee purely because she was a woman, "It is terribly hard
to condemn a woman to the gallows."vi. Public views on Lees sentence was 67% in favour of
the death penalty, those not in favour had that view mostly because of Lees gender and not
because they disliked the use of the death penalty. The 67% in favour cared little about the
fact that Lee was a woman and more because of the brutality of her crime. There were
however some protests, which was in part influenced due the it being 56 years since the last

pg. 3
woman was hung in Victoriavii. There were however protests from womans organising
committee which protested a woman being executed by the death penalty within
Australiaviii.
There was a discussion at the time about whether a woman should be subjected to capital
punishment or even if the death penalty should exist within Australia at all. After Lees
appeal was over turned many partitioned the decision. Councillor Boland told the press the
planned protest meeting in Richmond town hall at the end of the month would demand that
cabinet indefinitely revoke the death sentenceix. The decision was also opposed by the
Howard league for penal reform.
Last day of Jean Lee
Jean Lee died on the 19th of February 1951 at Pentridge prison. She plunged to her death at
one past eight in the morning for her part in the death of William Kent. Lee was carried to
the gallows by the executor and his assistant almost unconscious. She has been given a
sedative the night before and was unable to support her weight. Lee was strapped to a
chair, limp as she fell to her death. Lees body hung on the gallows for half an hour and then
buried on the grounds at Pentridgex.
During the 1940s and 50s the roles and expectations of woman were changing. Traditional
values became to change during and after world war two, there began to be an emphasis on
youth and beauty. Before this time there was a focus on moral goodness, refinement and
grace. While women became more and more sexualised by the male gaze, women like Jean
Lee whom used their sexuality and owned their sexuality were deviant and the woman were
marginalised. During the post war period, there was still an emphasis on marriage and
maternity, Jean Lee was to society a failure in these aspects. She left her husband and gave
custody of her daughter to her mother. She went from wife and mother to good time girl
and prostitute to murderess. Many of the media reported that her fall from grace was
caused by a failure to uphold societal values of femininityxi.
Thoughts on the life of Jean Lee
Jean Lee grew up doing a time of war and poverty. A time where people were questioning
human rights, womans right and prison reforms. She was the last woman to be executed in
Australia yet most people have never heard her name. its hard to say whether she deserved
her fate or not however what isnt debatable is that she had a hard life. She was repeatedly
mistreated and used by the men she should have trusted. Most protests from governmental
officials only occurred because of her gender, not because of the belief in her innocence or
that they believed that Clayton or Andrews deserved lighter sentences. Most of the
narratives surrounding her life played on the notion of the good girl turned bad. Lee was a
daughter, a mother, a wife, girlfriend and friend. Yes, she was a criminal but that was only
part of who she was.
The media focused on what they described as the two halves of her life. In an article
published by Molong express and Western District advertiser on Friday the 19 th of January

pg. 4
1951 the journalist writes Two halves in the life of Jean Lee, one the unsoiled girl who grew
to womanhood and married and the women whom helped kill a man xii
Many media publications described Jean Lee in her last few days as violent and attacking those
whom entered her cell. The articles focused on her deserting her husband. Never mentioning
physical and emotional abuse. While they described her deviant and immoral behaviour they also
focused on her femineity and the she was a woman. This is evident when contrasting how the media
represented Clayton and Andrews. Jean Lee Unconscious; But Men Remain Steady, many of the
articles described how Jean Lee was carried to her death, that she was either completely or almost
completely unconscious at the time of her hanging. This in contrast to how the articles describe
Clayton and Andrews. Here they are described as strong and remained steady, there last words
being Good bye Charlie, good bye Robert and then saying a prayerxiii. The focused on how the men in
their last moments reflected traditional masculine values while Lee expressed feminine values in the
moments before death.

Figure 3, Jean Lee, newspix

Jean Lee the early years:

Jean Lee was born Marjorie Maude Wright on the 10th of December 1919 in New South
Wales. At eighteen Lee married twenty-five-year-old Raymond Thomas Brees in March
1938. This was not a happy marriage, Brees repeatedly cheated on Lee as well as in and out
of work. In July 1938 Lee discovered she was pregnant, this cause even more stress over
money as she had only her husbands dole to rely on. By 1939 Lee and Brees welcomed a

pg. 5
daughter Jillianxiv. Lee applied for divorce in 1942,
her daughter at the time was being raised by her
mother Florence, away from Leexv. It was reported
by Jean that during her marriage her husband
repeatedly physically abused her, spent what little
money they had at the pub and repeatedly lost his
job. When separated Brees showed up numerous
times at Lees place of employment which caused
her to lose her job. At this stage Jillian was
permanently placed in her grandmothers custody.
For three years Lee was involved with a man
named Morris Dias. Dias introduced Lee into
criminal life typically involving scams and
prostitution. In March 1944 Lee was convicted
with assuming a false name and was charged 2.
During these years Lee was trapped in Perth in
another abusive relationship. The war made
traveling harder and she was more and more
reliant on Dias. Dias made Lee work as a prostitute
Figure 4) Jean Lee is escorted to the City Watch house by
to pay for his many bails and kept most of her detectives Ronald Kellet (left) and Cyril Currer (Right) on
earningsxvi. November 8, 1949, newspix

In 1944 police were concerned over a high rise of crime, particularly a rise in violent crimes.
During this time Lee, had come to the attention of the police many times for prostitution. It
was during this time that Lee was working for Dias, most of her money going to his many
court costs and criminal charges. Lee was earning during this time around 15 to 20 pounds,
however she received little of the money she earned. The physical and phycological abuse
from Dias was increasing which was why in 1946 Lee left Dias and moved from Tasmania to
Sydneyxvii.
Lee went from a smart hard working young woman and mother to a down trodden woman
with low self-esteem. She had now been involved in two abusive relationships and placed in
a position where she had become a criminal. the continued exploitation of Lee changed her
and played a part in leading her to her death.

pg. 6
 Figure 6 Jean Lee, police identity photograph
Figure 1 Norman Andrews police identity photograph

Figure 7 Robert Clayton police identity photograph

pg. 7
 References
Primary Sources:
Prison mugshot of killer Jean Lee, the last woman hanged in Australia, taken in 1950.
Picture: News Corp Australia
Jean Lee hangs on Monday, The Courier-Mail (Brisbane, Qld.: 1933 - 1954), February
16th 1951, Trove
Move to reprieve Jean Lee, The Newcastle Sun (NSW 1918- 1954), 15 December
1950, Trove
Minister pleads for Jean Lees life, The Argus (Melbourne, 1848, 1957), 15th
December 1950, Trove
Victorians endorse Jean Lees fate, Barrier daily truth (Broken Hill, NSW), 18th
December 1950, Trove
Government may reverse hanging decision, The Mercury (Hobart, Tasmania, 1860-
1954), 13th December 1950, Trove
He saw Jean Lee, Clayton and Andrews Hang, Mirror, 3rd March 1951, Trove
Victorian murderers go to the gallows, Barrier Daily Truth (Broken Hill, NSW: 1908;
1941 - 1954) Tue 20 Feb 1951 Page 1, Trove

Secondary source:
Paul Wilson, Don Treble and Robyn Lincoln, Jean Lee: the last woman hanged in Australia,
Milsons Point NSW, Random house, 1996
Adam Smith, Safe as houses: 50 Dorrit street Carlton, 2016
The last few dark days of Jean Lee, Heather Crosby, daily liberal, 2010
Lisa Featherstone, Sexy Mamas? Women, Sexuality and Reproduction in Australia in the
1940s, 2009, Australian Historical Studies, Taylor and Francis
Figure 3, 4, 5, 6 & 7, One of Melbournes most grisly murders led Jean Lee to the gallows in
1951, Herald Sun, October 18, 2016

pg. 8
i
Prison mugshot of killer Jean Lee, the last woman hanged in Australia, taken in 1950. Picture: News Corp
Australia
ii
Jean Lee hangs on Monday, The Courier-Mail (Brisbane, Qld.: 1933 - 1954), February 16th 1951, Trove
iii
Adam Smith, Safe as houses: 50 Dorrit street Carlton, 2016
iv
The last few dark days of Jean Lee, Heather Crosby, daily liberal, 2010
v
Move to reprieve Jean Lee, The Newcastle Sun (NSW 1918- 1954), 15 December 1950, Trove
vi
Minister pleads for Jean Lees life, The Argus (Melbourne, 1848, 1957), 15th December 1950, Trove
vii
Victorians endorse Jean Lees fate, Barrier daily truth (Broken Hill, NSW), 18th December 1950, Trove
viii
Government may reverse hanging decision, The Mercury (Hobart, Tasmania, 1860- 1954), 13th December
1950, Trove
ix
Paul Wilson, Don Treble and Robyn Lincoln, Jean Lee: the last woman hanged in Australia, Milsons Point
NSW, Random house, 1996, pg. 180
x
He saw Jean Lee, Clayton and Andrews Hang, Mirror, 3rd March 1951, Trove
xi
Lisa Featherstone, Sexy Mamas? Women, Sexuality and Reproduction in Australia in the 1940s, 2009,
Australian Historical Studies, Taylor and Francis
xii
Tragic story of Jean Lee, Molong Express and Western District Advertiser (NSW: 1887 - 1954) Fri 19 Jan 1951
Page 5, Trove
xiii
Victorian murderers go to the gallows, Barrier Daily Truth (Broken Hill, NSW: 1908; 1941 - 1954) Tue 20 Feb
1951 Page 1, Trove
xiv
Paul Wilson, Don Treble and Robyn Lincoln, Jean Lee: the last woman hanged in Australia, Milsons Point
NSW, Random house, 1996, 1-51
xv
Jean Lee hangs on Monday, The Courier mail, 16th February 1951, In Trove, accessed 3/10/17
xvi
Paul Wilson, Don Treble and Robyn Lincoln, Jean Lee: the last woman hanged in Australia, Milsons Point
NSW, Random house, 1996, 1-51
xvii
Paul Wilson, Don Treble and Robyn Lincoln, Jean Lee: the last woman hanged in Australia, Milsons Point
NSW, Random house, 1996, pg. 58-59

pg. 9