Raynor Goddard, Baron Goddard

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Raynor Goddard, Baron Goddard , GCB , Kt , PC , KC (born April 10, 1877 in London , † May 29, 1971 London) was a British lawyer who was particularly known for his harsh judgments and his conservative attitude. His nicknames were "Tiger" and "Justice-in-a-jiffy" ( judgment in the blink of an eye ). In 1957, he turned down six appointments in one hour.

In 1952 he was responsible for the sentencing of nineteen-year-old Derek Bentley to death. The present jury had found him guilty, but at the same time submitted an extraordinary unanimous petition for mercy, which Goddard refused. Considered one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in British history, the case sparked a high-profile nationwide debate on the death penalty , which led to the 1965 Abolition of Death Penalty Act, and thus the suspension and ultimate abolition of the death penalty in the United Kingdom. The Bentley case continued to preoccupy the UK judiciary for 45 years, until his posthumous pardon in 1993 (40 years after his execution) and, finally, the judgment being overturned five years later. In 1991, the case was filmed with Christopher Eccleston in the lead role (Director: Peter Medak ), Judge Goddard was portrayed by Michael Gough .

Life

Goddard attended Marlborough College and later Trinity College , Oxford . He graduated with a law degree in 1898 and was admitted to the bar a year later.

On May 31, 1906, he married Marie Schuster, daughter of the banker Sir Felix Otto Schuster , and had three children with her. She died on May 16, 1928, during an operation at the age of 44.

In 1923 he was appointed Crown Attorney . On April 5, 1932, he was appointed judge of the King's Bench Division at the High Court of England and Wales and knighted as a Knight Bachelor the following year . In 1944 he was raised to life peer as Baron Goddard , of Aldbourne in the County of Wiltshire . In January 1946 he was appointed Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales and held that office until August 1958. On the occasion of his end of service, he was accepted as Knight Grand Cross in the Order of the Bath .

Goddard died in his London home on May 29, 1971.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ The Last of the Tiger. In: Time. New York, September 1, 1958.
personal data
SURNAME Goddard, Raynor, Baron Goddard
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Goddard, Raynor
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English judge
DATE OF BIRTH April 10, 1877
PLACE OF BIRTH London
DATE OF DEATH May 29, 1971