Hanging

Traumatology

Hanging by the neck

Two mechanisms can intervene in the event of hanging by the neck:

hanging with fall (technical of the Long drop ): the stop Net of the fall by the cord causes a rupture of the cervical vertebrae; the wrenching of the higher end of the Spinal-cord (the cerebral trunk) causes an attack of the nerve centres which order breathing and certain cardiac functions, causing the brutal stop of their operation from where a quasi instantaneous death;
hanging without fall (or low height): the mechanism of hanging is the Strangulation, the compression of the neck involving according to the exerted pressure level:

the compression of the jugular veins, preventing the return of blood since the head towards the heart, from where an edema and a cyanosite visible with the level of the face and language, and a cerebral edema involving a rather slow loss of consciousness followed by a rather late death.
the compression of the arteries carotids involves a cerebral Ischémie which results in a fast loss of consciousness. A particular case is compression on these arteries of pressure pick-ups (the " glomi") who involves a deceleration extreme and immediate heart until the syncope and the cardiac arrest.
the compression of the air routes requires a very strong pressure, and the crushing of the Trachée is a rare possibility, the latter being protected by rings from cartilage. More frequently, it is the base of the language, pushed back by the bond, which comes to block the crossroads of the air and digestive routes. An asphyxiation of the subject follows.

One distinguishes

complete hangings: the feet are above the ground;
incomplete hangings: the feet touch the ground.

An incomplete hanging is always a “slow hanging”. At the time of slow hangings, death occurs only at the end of long minutes, sometimes more than ten, and condemned is shaken spasms, its legs seek a support hopelessly. Called “Gigoter at the end of the cord” or “dance of hung”, this spectacle delighted the many spectators of public hangings. In addition, with the Middle Ages, condemned were carried out naked, and one saw the male member entering in erection and ejaculating, while the pubis of the women inflated and turned blue by accumulation of blood. At the time of the rise of the puritanism, in certain places it was decided of émasculer condemned and to make wear a skirt to condemned.

Dépendaison

Vis-a-vis one hung, the first action must be the dépendaison, only means of saving the life of the person, with however three exceptions:

it acts of a legal hanging in a country practitioner the capital punishment, or of a popular lynching; in these two cases, the dépendaison endangers the life of the rescuer;
the person obviously died for a long time (signs of Putréfaction): the dépendaison does not bring any benefit then and is likely to obstruct the investigation of police force;
the person is in a difficult to reach place with a strong risk to be wounded while falling (for example nobody hung in height).

The two risks related to the dépendaison are:

the risk of fall of the victim, which can cause secondary traumatisms;
the mobilization of the neck in the event of cervical traumatism.

In the ideal:

a person supports the victim under the arms and raises it to slacken the pressure of the cord;
another person loosens the cord or the cut;
the victim is lengthened on the ground while trying to maintain the head in the axis of the back, for example the person who loosened the cord maintains the head lasting the operation.

The assumption of responsibility is then traditional:

call of the helps
according to the assessment, put in PLS if the person breathes, or cardiopulmonary Réanimation if it does not breathe (probable case);
immobilization of the neck by a cervical Collar as soon as possible.

If the priority goes to the survival of the victim, it is advisable to try to disturb the environment at least for the investigation of police force. In particular, one will endeavor to preserve the node, important component, while being satisfied to loosen it or while cutting the cord above the node.

History

Hanging was practiced at all times. Nevertheless, it was used at certain times than with others.

With the the Middle Ages: one hung especially the robbers. Sometimes, death by Bûcher was preceded by hanging in order to avoid too many pains to the victim (practical known as of the Retentum );

At the time of the “Far-West” (E. - U.): one enormously hung people, especially robbers and cheaters with the plays, Hors-la-loi;

At the time of the Second world war: the Nazis enormously hung people, it was the means more used after the shooting. This type of Meurtre was often public in order to make reign terror within the civil populations or in the Concentration camps, to show the “example”. The Nazis had even elaborate a technique which consisted in attaching one of the legs of the torture victim so that it does not touch the ground, leaving with the other the care to support with it only the weight of the body. Tiredness helping, condemned ended up hanging itself, after long hours of torments. The finished war, of many traitors, much of German officers and Nazis, were condemned to died by hanging (with or without official lawsuit according to the cases);

Currently: hanging remains one of the first means used to commit suicide (in particular in Prison), especially at the men, with the suicides by Firearm.

In much of case (executions at the end of the Lawsuit of Nuremberg), hanging consists in dropping the body since a certain height in a trap door in order to cause a brutal rupture of cervical (technique of the Long drop , developed at the 19th century by, according to the sources: either British, or Irishmen). Death is in this case instantaneous but one reported certain executions during which condemned was decapitated because of a too great kinetic energy accumulated during the fall. For these reasons, the length of the cord was thus limited according to the weight of the torture victim (of the " tables of correspondance" had been established besides for this purpose by several Bourreau X).

Hanging by country

Hanging is always a legal mode of application of the Capital punishment in country of right such as the India, the Malaysia, Singapore and the Japan, just as in Islamic countries according to the Charia, such as the Iran, the Sudan and the Saudi Arabia.

Afghanistan

Under the Talibans, public hangings took place by means of the goals of football during the matches.

Germany

In the countries occupied by the Nazi Germany between 1939 and 1945, slow hanging was the method of public execution the most employed. It preferably applied to the in favor S and traffickers of the Black-market. The bodies in general hung several days with the gibet with the sight of all.

During the allied occupation of Germany, hanging was applied to ten of twelve condemned to dead (Bormann was condemned by contumacy and Göring committed suicide the execution day before) Procès of Nuremberg like to the many war criminals found and judged by the international courts. After the signature of the armistice, resistant German was carried out by the methods specific to the occupying forces: English practiced hanging; French, decapitation by guillotine; American and Soviet, firing squad.

Australia

The last man carried out by hanging in Australia was Ronald Ryan, the February 3rd 1967.

Austria

The Austrian bracket was special. It was about a group with a staircase to facilitate the access of the torturer. The delinquent was to put back at the group, the torturer chief put a cord around the blow to him and tightened it, while two assistants drew the delinquent by the legs. Thus, no condemned had to suffer a long time. The capital punishment was abolished in 1918, re-established in 1934 and réabolie in 1968. Still today, in the event of crisis engraves, the federal President has the right to found " Populaires" course; who can pronounce the sentence of death, which will be carried out by hanging.

Brazil applied the capital punishment by hanging until in 1855. National heroes, such as Tiradentes (in 1792) underwent this punishment. The last condemned to death was Manoel da Motta Conqueiro, carried out in 1855, although it was innocent. After that, the capital punishment was abolished in this country.

Bulgaria

Vasil Levski, Bulgarian national hero, was carried out by the Othoman court with Sofia the February 19th 1873. Since the release of Bulgaria, commemorations at the date birthday gather thousands of people to the foot of the monument marking the site of the gibet.

Canada

Hanging was the only method of execution in Canada, until the abolition of the capital punishment in 1976. Last hanging took place the December 11th 1962.

China

The United States

Currently, only the states of Washington and the New Hampshire kept the choice of execution per hanging.

With the Delaware, the law changed into 1996, imposing the Lethal injection, but keeping the possibility of hanging for condemned to died by hanging before 1996. The latter then had the choice between hanging and lethal injection. Billy Bailey, subjected to this choice in 1996, chose hanging. Since, no condemned is included in the category and the bracket was dismounted.

Generally, for the states practitioner the capital punishment, hanging was largely replaced by other methods, such as the Electric chair and the lethal injection.

The last public hanging legally led to the United States (which was also the last public execution of the country) was that of Rainey Bethea, the August 14th 1936 with Owensboro, in the state of the Kentucky.

France

Hungary

In repression of the Insurrection of Budapest of 1956, the Prime Minister Imre Nagy was considered and hung in secrecy. Its body was incinerated without ceremony by the Hungarian government supported by Moscow. Nagy was rehabilitated thereafter.

India

The Supreme court of India circumscribed the capital punishment with the cases of an extreme scarcity, like that of Dhananjoy Chatterjee, recognized guilty of the murder then rape in 1990 of a 14 year old teenager to Kolkata. The way in which the crime was committed (the defendant initially violently struck its victim using a blunt object before violating it whereas it was dying) was considered likely to apply the capital punishment. A call to leniency was launched by the President of the Indian Union, but was not heard. Hanging, first execution with the Bengal-Westerner since eleven years, took place the August 14th 2004.

Iran

Several forms of execution cohabit in Iran. With regard to hanging, it is applied by means of a telescopic mobile crane, raising the body of condemned.

the August 15th 2004, a 16 year old young girl, Atefah Rajabi Sahaaleh, was hung to have made “acts incompatible with chastity”.
the July 19th 2005, two teenagers, Mahmoud Asgari and Ayaz Marhoni, respectively old of 15 and 17 years, were hung publicly with Mashhad on the place of Justice, with the reason for homosexuality and rape.

Iraq

hanging was a frequent procedure of the capital punishment under Saddam Hussein, quite as frequent of our time.
the March 9th 2006, official of the Supreme Legal adviser of Iraq confirmed the execution by the authorities Iraqui women of thirteen risen by hanging, the first executions official of the country since the restoration of the capital punishment in 2004.
the November 5th 2006, Saddam Hussein was condemned to the capital punishment by hanging for Crime against humanity, then hung the December 30th 2006 at dawn.

The only execution of one condemned to died in Israel was that of the chief Nazi Adolf Eichmann, hung in 1962.

Japan

Great Britain

The capital punishment by hanging goes back to the reign of the Saxons, about the year 400. The list of the torturers begins with the name from Thomas de Warblynton (Années 1360). This list becomes complete starting from the Années 1500 and finishes with the names of Robert Leslie Stewart and Harry Allen, who carried out the last executions in 1964.

The capital punishment for murder was abolished by the British Parliament in 1965, and, thanks to the introduction of the law on the Human rights in 1998, the capital punishment was abolished for all the crimes, civilians and soldiers.

The last woman carried out by hanging was Ruth Ellis, the July 13rd 1955, by Albert Pierrepoint, celebrates English torturer of the 20th century.

Singapore

In Singapore, hanging is done according to the method of the length-drop in judgment of crimes such as the drug trafficking, removals or the illegal possession of firearms. Among the most recent cases:

Nguyen Tuong Van, 25 years an Australian young person, was hung the December 2nd 2005 for drug trafficking in 2002. The many supports (Australian government, Amnesty International) do not have is enough to inflect the decision of the Singaporean authorities.
a Malaysian young person 24 years, Took Leng Hown, was hung for murder the November 2nd 2006.

In Soviet Union, the last condemned to died by hanging were Andreï Vlassov and eleven other officers of his army, the 1946. This procedure being reserved in this country with the War crimes.

See too

External bonds

To depend one hung, the General practitioner n°1974, October 12th 1999

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