Barton Kay Kirkham
| Barton Kay Kirkham | |
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Utah State Prison mug shot
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| Born |
December 1936 Salt Lake City, Utah, USA |
| Died | June 7, 1958 (aged 21) Draper, Utah, USA |
| Criminal penalty | Death by hanging |
| Criminal status | Executed at Utah State Prison on June 7, 1958 |
| Conviction(s) |
Robbery – 1955 Murder – December 1956 |
| Utah State Historical Society | |
 Barton K. Kirkham and piano
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Barton K. Kirkham and books
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Barton K. Kirkham and drink
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Barton K. Kirkham at door
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Barton Kay Kirkham (December 1936 – June 7, 1958) was a deserter of the United States Air Force who was discharged in 1955 after committing a robbery in Colorado. In 1956, he was sentenced to death after the murder of two grocery store clerks during an armed robbery in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Kirkham chose to die by hanging to generate publicity and become an inconvenience to the state of Utah. Though an attempt was made to appeal his conviction by questioning his sanity, prison officials noted that Kirkham's defiant attitude remained remorseless until shortly before his execution. His hanging at Utah State Prison in 1958 was the first to be carried out by the state in 46 years. Kirkham is the last prisoner to be hanged by the state of Utah.
Barton Kay Kirkham was the eldest of five children raised by a Mormon family in Salt Lake City. He was a fan of bop music and described himself as "a rebel." Kirkham left his family's church life and school in the 11th grade and joined the United States Air Force. After 18 months, he committed a robbery while absent without leave in Colorado, and was given an undesirable discharge from the force. Kirkham spent the next 9 months in a reformatory and was paroled in July 1956.
On the night of August 12, 1956, Kirkham entered the Nibley Park Market grocery store in Salt Lake City to rob it. When he thought 50-year-old storekeeper David Avon Frame was not giving him all of the money that he had, Kirkham took Frame to the back of the store. There he found 37-year-old Ruth Holmes Webster, mother of four children in Sandy, Utah. Kirkham had them kneel on the floor and shot them in the head. He netted $54 from the robbery.
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Wikipedia