The Pontefract Murder by Eric Jackson, former JP

Although this happened in Pontefract, a small market town in West Yorkshire, it could have happened anywhere. It is the story of the brutal murder of Rhoda Walker, the middle-aged widow of a jeweller and keeper of a jewellery shop in late 1918, just before the end of the First World War.

It describes the finding of the body, the injuries suffered by Mrs Walker, the inquest and her funeral, and the subsequent police investigation followed by the arrest of two suspects, both soldiers who were absent without leave.

We are then taken through the entire judicial process; the re-convened inquest, the committal proceedings and the trial at Leeds Assizes. It describes the accused, their journey from soldiers to murderers and their evidence at trial through to their inevitable execution. It asks the question “was justice done” looking at the law as it was then, and what it is now. It examines their separate version of events leading up to the murder and discusses what the effect on the verdict might have been had either man been believed.

Additional information

The event will commence at 7pm, so please come early to register and get your seat!

Cash will be needed for the raffle which supports the event and the work of the Pontefract Civic Society.

After the talk, free light refreshments will be served. Books and merchandise are also available.

If you wish to become a subscribing member of the civic society, you can join online which then allows you FREE access to all talks.

The talk will take place on the 1st floor in the Nelson Room; there is a lift just off the Town Hall foyer where you will also find the toilets.