Mary Rogers

Mary Mabel Bennett Rogers (March 9, 1883 – December 8, 1905) was the last woman legally executed by Vermont. Rogers was hanged for the 1902 murder of her husband, Marcus Rogers.

Early life Mary Mabel Bennett was born to Charles and Johanna Bennett. Her father was reportedly a mentally ill alcoholic who was unable to hold down a job. As a result, he was abusive and tried to kill her a number of times.

Marriage At age 15, Mary Bennett married Marcus Rogers. She was noted for being immature and restless, and often stayed away from home when she was upset with her husband.

Rogers gave birth to a daughter in 1901. When the child was six months old, Rogers ran into a neighbor's home crying that she had dropped the baby, who later died of a fractured skull. Mary tied Perham's hands several times, and each time Perham easily broke free of the restraint, with Mary pretending to be disappointed when he did so. Mary then challenged her husband to try the trick. She tied his wrists a few times, and he also easily broke free. Then Mary "convinced" Perham to try the trick on her husband. When Perham bound Marcus's wrists behind his back, Rogers could not break free. Mary took a vial of chloroform from her purse and forced her husband to breathe it in for about 20 minutes, until he stopped struggling. Mary went through Marcus's pockets and removed his life insurance payment book. Mary and Perham then rolled the body into the nearby river and Marcus Rogers drowned. Mary tacked Marcus's hat to a tree with a forged suicide note. On December 6, the committee reported in favor of its passage. On December 7, a vote on the bill in the House of Representatives was defeated by a vote of 139 to 91.

On December 9, Representative Archibald proposed a joint resolution of the Vermont House and Senate to investigate Rogers's physical and mental condition at the time of the commission of the crime and at the present time, and to prepare a report as to her condition for the governor. The resolution stated that if it should appear that Rogers either at the time she committed the crime or at present was mentally or physically unsound, that a reprieve should be requested and her execution delayed until after the 1906 Vermont Legislative Session. The House adopted this resolution but the Senate did not.

Investigation into prison behavior In 1904, the Vermont Commission to Investigate State Institutions began investigating charges of sexual misconduct at the Vermont State Prison, where Rogers was being held. A large portion of the commission's investigation focused on allegations of inappropriate sexual relations between Rogers and two other prisoners. Evidence of issues at the prison included the fact that a child was born to Rogers after she had been incarcerated for over a year.

Execution After the U.S. Supreme Court decision, Bell signed Rogers' execution warrant and the execution was scheduled for December 8, 1905. Rogers inquired on December 7 whether the gallows were being erected, despite efforts having been made to muffle the construction noise. During the ten days between the signing of the warrant and her execution, Rogers ate and slept well, but she declined breakfast on the morning of her execution. Advocates for clemency later attempted to have a large monument to her memory placed at the cemetery. The Augustinian fathers who managed the site refused to allow it, citing a family request that no memorial mark Rogers' grave.