Guenther Podola

Guenther Fritz Erwin Podola (8 February 1929 – 5 November 1959, alias Mike Colato) was a German-born petty thief, and the last man to be hanged in the UK for killing a police officer. His trial was controversial because of his defence of amnesia and the use of expert witnesses to determine whether his illness was real.

Life Podola was born in Berlin, Germany. He was a fanatical member of the Hitler Youth movement. Podola moved to Canada in August 1952. On 1 March 1957 he was sentenced to 10 days' imprisonment following a conviction for burglary in Montreal. Then on 26 March he was sentenced for another 11 counts of theft and burglary and imprisoned for 2 years. On 25 July 1958 Podola was released and deported back to West Germany. He broke into the house of an American model, Verne Schiffmann in Roland Gardens, and stole jewellery and furs worth £2,000. Podola shot one of the officers, Detective Sergeant Raymond Purdy, through the heart with a Radom 9mm semi-automatic pistol, and, as a result, lost his memory of events. After hours of deliberation, they decided he was. A fresh jury was called to hear the trial itself which commenced on 18 July 1959. When asked for his plea, he replied: "I do not remember the crime for which I stand accused ... I am unable to answer the charges." He was defended by Frederick Lawton QC. Neurologist Michael Ashby gave evidence as an expert medical witness at his trial, as did psychiatrist Archibald Leigh, who claimed Podola was feigning his illness.

The jury took 38 minutes to find Podola guilty of murder, and he was sentenced to death by the trial judge, Mr Justice Edmund Davies. He later confessed his guilt. The Home Secretary, Rab Butler, under a little-known and little-used power, referred the case to the Court of Criminal Appeal, which upheld the conviction. The Attorney-General's refusal of leave to appeal to the House of Lords brought the case to a close in a fresh outburst of public controversy. Podola was hanged at Wandsworth Prison at 9:45 a.m. on 5 November 1959. He was buried in the prison graveyard (grave 59). His execution took place five years before the last execution of any criminal and six years before the suspension and later abolition of the death penalty.