Georgios Pandelidis

18618410
Making History

Capital Punishment in the State of Victoria

The Case of Colin Ross

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On Monday 24th of April 1922 the notorious Gun Alley Murder Case reached its conclusion.

Convicted murderer Colin Campbell Ross was executed. He was hung at 10 o’clock in the

morning. The execution took place at the Melbourne Gaol with many people attending. The

last words of Colin Campbell Ross were a demonstration of his innocence. “I am an innocent

man, I never committed the crime”2. The proceedings of his execution were an opportunity

for everyone involved in the case to find peace. The public’s fascination about the case

1
Figure 1: Picture showing Colin Campbell Ross, Daily News, Colin Ross The Accused, (1922), In Trove [online
database], access date 11 October 2018
2
The Final Act, The Daily Express, 25th April 1922, in Trove [online database], access date 3 October 2018

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 3would have to turn to other aspects of social

life. No one knew at that time that the case of

Colin Ross was far from over. In fact, it was

decades away from over.

The Death Penalty in cases like Colin Ross can be

considered as controversial. It is not just

the period that it took place in but also the way

in which the physical evidence of the crime was

examined. It is not unusual in modern times of

the 21st and even late 20th century cases that

were concluded with a verdict of capital

punishment to be reversed and move on to the

exoneration of a prisoner from his/her crimes4.

This phenomenon becomes clear when

someone considers the discovery and use of

DNA testing on evidence collected from crime

scenes. This puts a new perspective on the cases

of many prisoners that were executed a long

time before the discovery and use of DNA

testing and applies to the case of Colin Ross. It implies that the Justice system in the pre-

DNA era could have been more cautious and thorough with the examination of the evidence

3
Figure 2: Picture showing the DNA chain, DNA Testing [image], 2018,
https://www.tribuneonlineng.com/154608/, accessed 11 Oct 2018
4
Lawrence C, M, The Innocence Revolution and the Death Penalty, Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law, vol 1,
no2 (2005), pp 573-584

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and the events that led to a crime. This means, a more thorough and sceptical approach on

the accounts of witnesses as well as the testimony of the man accused of the crime. In the

case of Colin Ross, the Attorney General stated after the trial was over and the verdict was

finalised that “Colin Ross had an absolutely fair trial”5. As we can see later the Attorney

General made a good statement, but it was justified only by the trial proceedings not being

biased against Colin Ross. The main reason to write against the justice system in his case is

its inability to act in a way that is not sceptical of the way the few physical evidences was

examined. At this point, this essay will go back in time when it all started. On the 31st of

December 1921 when the body of Alma Tirschke was found murdered.

The investigation of a murder needs to be examined in two ways. First, the timeline of the

victim’s whereabouts before the murder and second, the timeline of the suspected

murderer. The timeline of the crime was a result of police investigation and opened the way

for the trial proceedings.

Timeline of Alma Tirschke’s movements the day of the murder.

The whereabouts of Alma Tirschke before her disappearance does not provide a lot of

evidence to understand why she went missing and found murdered one day later. The girl

was sent to the city to run an errand for her grandmother. She was told to pick up a parcel

from a butcher shop and deliver it to her uncle’s shop6. The girl lived with her grandmother

in East Melbourne. She had a lot of distance to cover which means that somewhere along

the way someone must have seen her. The detectives in charge of the case asked people

who were located near the butcher shop where the girl had gone and if they had seen her

5
The Final Act, The Daily Express, 25th April 1922, in Trove [online database], access date 3 October 2018
6
Melbourne Murder, The Maitland Daily Mercury, 31 December 1921 in Trove [online database], access date,
3 October 2018

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had they noticed anything unusual. The butcher’s shop was the last place the girl was seen

alive7.

At this point it should be mentioned Alma’s clothes were never found. Her relatives gave a

description of what she was wearing and that helped the detectives ask questions. The

noticeable feature in her appearance was her hat which had the shape of a cone. One

woman, Mrs Edmonds said she saw a girl that fitted the description of Alma walking near

the area where Ross’s wine bar was located. She said she saw Ross, whom she knew,

looking at Alma and when she looked again they were gone9. On another account May

Young not only spotted the girl but also remembered the girl was frightened and dropped

7
Melbourne Murder, The Maitland Daily Mercury, 31 December 1921, access date, 3 October 2018
8
Figure 3: Picture of Alma Tirschke, Alma Tirschke [image],(2013),
http://marvmelb.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-gun-alley-murder-part-1.html, accessed 12 October 2018
9
Gun Alley Murder, The Argus, 26 Jan 1922, page 7, in Trove [online database], accessed 8 Oct 2018

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the parcel she was holding10. She did not see anything else after that incident. The

conclusion one can make at this point has a social character. In the 1920’s people could

remember details about incidents mainly because of the way they spent their time.

Watching people and their movements was a way to amuse themselves. In this case this

activity led to something more serious, the participation in a police investigation.

These were the whereabouts of Alma Tirschke the day of the murder, but it was not the last

time she was mentioned in an account from a witness. The whereabouts of Colin Ross also

implicates a girl and many observations led witnesses to believe it was Alma that was in the

whereabouts of Colin Ross the day of the murder.

Timeline of Colin Ross’s movements the day of the murder

The whereabouts of Colin Ross are like pieces of a puzzle that do not necessarily fit with

each other. As mentioned above Mrs Edmond saw Colin Ross looking at Alma when she was

passing through the alley where his bar was located.

11There were other witnesses that were asked

questions that stated that something suspicious

had happened inside Colin Ross’s bar. Olivia

Maddocks said that when she visited the bar

there was a private room in the back where she

spotted two men and a girl inside. That happened

around 5 o’clock in the afternoon of the 30th of December 1921. She said that when she

10
Gun Alley Murder, The Argus, 26 Jan 1922, page 7, in Trove [online database], accessed 8 Oct 2018
11
Figure 4: Picture of Gun Alley, Limelight, Gun Alley [image], (2015),
http://twistedhistory.net.au/wordpress/2015/12/30/the-gun-alley-murder/, accessed 12 October 2018

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returned forty-five minutes later the girl was not there12. Later that night a witness saw

Colin Ross standing outside a building for a long time. She observed that he left and came

back several times13. A witness came forward and said that he had a confrontation with Ross

where he admitted the crime. A barmaid said that she too saw a girl in the private room of

the bar and another witness who knew Ross said that he often called little girls that were

passing through his bar and invited them into the private room14. Colin Ross in his last words

still pleaded his innocence. This confusion with one side saying guilty and another saying

innocent was a result of an investigation and examination that went according with the

tools and the technology of the time. Every witness that spoke about the day of the murder

suggested that Colin Ross had many reasons to be believed as a suspect. This case continued

with another witness Frank Upton who said he heard a woman in the bar saying to Ross

“We need to get rid of her” and claimed that a bottle Ross had given him had blood on it15.

Finally, the police found hair in Ross’s blankets that according to the examination that was

conducted with the use of a microscope, matched that of Alma Tirschke16. That last

evidence was the crucial element that condemned Colin Ross to be executed.

Melbourne Society in the 1920’s

The research on a murder case that concludes with an execution is an opportunity to

examine how a society reacted in such cases. It also provides information about the values

people had in the past and their perception of the society as it is revealed with their words

12
Gun Alley Murder, The Argus, 26 January 1922, page 7, in Trove, accessed 8 October 2018
13
Gun Alley Murder, The Argus, 26 January 1922, page 7, in Trove, accessed 8 October 2018

14
Gun Alley Murder, The Argus, 26 January 1922, page 7, in Trove, accessed 8 October 2018

15
Gun Alley Murder, The Northern Standard, Saturday February 25, 1922, page 6, in Trove [online database],
accessed 8 October 2018
16
Accused’s Story, Queensland Times, Thursday 2 February 1922, page 3, in Trove [online database], accessed
8 October 2018

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during their testimonies. The day that Colin Ross was taken into custody there was a crowd

of about 100 people gathered outside the court room. What the crowd wanted was to “get

a glimpse” of Colin Ross17. Once again, a conclusion to be made is the fascination of the

public with matters of the justice system and especially the criminals themselves. The

activity and the sense that justice affairs were on, gave the crowd the sense that they were

watching a play in the First Act. Furthermore, it suggests that civilians of Melbourne wanted

to see Justice served and this was the first step to achieve it. The crowd got bigger as time

went by18 which helps us realise that the news was spreading by word of mouth quickly and

the city was moving in the rhythm of the case.

A witness who was called to testify revealed that he heard about the crime the next day it

happened but did not speak to the police until ten days later.19 He had information but

chose to keep it for himself because of his own legal troubles. This was opposite to what the

interest of the crowd revealed in the paragraph. It shows that in the 1920’s just like today

there is hesitation from people to come forward and say what they know. People wanted

Justice but also did not want to get into trouble themselves.

Finally, a witness was asked if she had come to testify only to get the reward of 1000 dollars

in case her information would lead to the conviction of Ross. She answered negatively and

that she did not expect any reward20. There are two things here. First, the fact that there

was a reward to anyone who would give information. This shows that the police needed the

help of the public to figure out what exactly had happened. Second, the negative response

17
Gun Alley Murder, The Argus, 26 January 1922, page 7, in Trove [online database], accessed 8 October 2018
18
Gun Alley Murder, The Argus, 26 January 1922, page 7, in Trove [online database], accessed 8 October 2018
19
Gun Alley Murder, The Argus, 26 January 1922, page 7, in Trove [online database], accessed 8 October 2018
20
Gun Alley Murder, The Argus, 26 January 1922, page 7, in Trove [online database], accessed 8 October 2018

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of the witness when asked about the reward shows a sense of doing the righteous and

moral thing and helping the system serve Justice.

Conclusion

The conclusion of this essay is that the society of the 1920’s worked and behaved very

differently than the modern 21st century society. The technology of the time did not allow a

high standard investigation. The justice system relied solely on witnesses and archaic ways

of examining physical evidence. Colin Ross’s case shows that both the crime and the trial

were intriguing for the public and was a way for them who had to testify to demonstrate

their moral values and help send a criminal to jail and in this case to his death. Colin Ross

was given a pardon in 2008 eighty-three years after he was executed.

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 PRIMARY SOURCES

1) Picture of Colin Ross, Daily News, Colin Ross The Accused, (1922), In Trove [online
database], access date 11 October 2018

2) The Final Act, The Daily Express, 25th April 1922, in Trove [online database], access
date 3 October 2018

3) The Final Act, The Daily Express, 25th April 1922, in Trove [online database], access date 3
October 2018

4) Melbourne Murder, The Maitland Daily Mercury, 31 December 1921 in Trove [online
database], access date, 3 October 2018

5) Gun Alley Murder, The Argus, 26 Jan 1922, page 7, in Trove [online database],
accessed 8 Oct 2018

6) Gun Alley Murder, The Northern Standard, Saturday February 25, 1922, page 6, in
Trove [online database], accessed 8 October 2018

7) Accused’s Story, Queensland Times, Thursday 2 February 1922, page 3, in Trove

[online database], accessed 8 October 2018

SECONDARY SOURCES

1) Picture of DNA chain, DNA Testing [image], 2018,

https://www.tribuneonlineng.com/154608/, accessed 11 Oct 2018

2) Lawrence C, M, The Innocence Revolution and the Death Penalty, Ohio State Journal
of Criminal Law, vol 1, no2 (2005), pp 573-584

3) Picture of Alma Tirschke Alma Tirschke [image],(2013),

http://marvmelb.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-gun-alley-murder-part-1.html,
accessed 12 October 2018

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4) Picture of Gun Alley, Limelight, Gun Alley [image], (2015),
http://twistedhistory.net.au/wordpress/2015/12/30/the-gun-alley-murder/,
accessed 12 October 2018

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