Colin Campbell Ross
| Colin Campbell Ross | |
|---|---|
| Born |
11 October 1892 North Fitzroy, Victoria, Australia |
| Died | 24 April 1922 (aged 29) Old Melbourne Gaol, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Occupation | Wine bar owner |
Colin Campbell Eadie Ross (11 October 1892 – 24 April 1922) was an Australian wine-bar owner convicted of the murder of a child, which became known as the Gun Alley Murder, and executed despite evidence that he was innocent. Following his execution, efforts were made to clear his name, but it was not until the 1990s that the key evidence was re-examined using modern forensic techniques, strongly indicating that Ross was innocent. As a result, an appeal for mercy was made to Victoria's Chief Justice in 2006, and on 27 May 2008 the Governor of Victoria pardoned Ross, in what is believed to be an Australian legal first.
Colin Ross was born in North Fitzroy, Melbourne, the third of five children born to Thomas and Elizabeth Ross. Thomas Ross died in 1900 leaving his wife to care for the five young children, including one who was newborn. Consequently, none of the children were well educated, each one leaving school as early as possible to find work to help support the family. Colin Ross began working at a local quarry at the age of 11, and over the following years he worked as a labourer and later as a wardsman at the Broadmeadows army hospital. In 1920, Elizabeth Ross became the manager of the Donnybrook Hotel, 30 kilometres north of Melbourne, with Colin as partner and another of her sons, Ronald, as licensee.
During this time, Colin Ross began a relationship with Lily Mae Brown, who worked in a Melbourne hotel. On 5 March 1920, Ross asked Brown to marry him, and when she refused, he produced a revolver. He followed her onto a tram, where he continued to threaten her, until she agreed to meet him later in the day. Instead, she contacted the police and a plain-clothes detective was present when she kept her appointment with Ross later in the evening. Ross was charged with using threatening words and for carrying firearms without permission. On the charge of using threatening words he was sentenced to 14 days imprisonment, along with a 12-month good behaviour bond, and was fined for carrying the firearm.
In April, 1921 the Ross family returned to Melbourne, where Colin Ross, with his brothers Stanley and Ronald, bought a wine shop in the Eastern Arcade, in the business centre of Melbourne. After the purchase of the shop, renamed "The Australian Wine Saloon", the Ross brothers continued the employment of its barmaid, Ivy Matthews. She later commented that the saloon had previously attracted a quiet and respectable clientele, but that the Ross brothers were willing to serve anyone, with the result that it was soon frequented by alcoholics and criminals. Other tenants in the building resented the intrusion of the wine bar's customers, who reportedly drank to excess, vomited and urinated in the arcade, and made lewd comments to passing women.
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