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Robert Andrew McGladdery - |
Background
and murder.
19 year old Pearl Gamble (photo) was a shop
assistant who she lived at home with her parents and three sisters lived in
Upper Damolly near
On Friday the 27th of January 1961, she went to a dance in the Henry Thompson Memorial Orange Hall in Newry with two other girls and her boyfriend Joe Clydesdale. Her distant cousin, 25 year old Robert Andrew McGladdery also went and she danced with him twice that evening. Click here for photo of him. She and her friends left the dancehall at 2.30 am. on the Saturday morning and one of her male friends gave her a lift and dropped her off at a crossroads near her home.
Pearl’s mum, Margaret, noticed that her bed had not been slept in but assumed that she had stayed at one of her friend’s houses.
On the morning of Saturday the 28th of January, Robert
McCulloch who was out working on a fence when 16 year old Charles Ashe came up
to him and told him that there was some clothing near the crossroads. He went to look at this and discovered that
the clothes were blood stained. The
nearest house was the Gamble’s so McCulloch walked there to use the phone and
report his find to the police. Pearl’s
mother was able to identify the clothes.
The body was finally found at 4.50 pm. that afternoon, naked except for
her stockings.
Arrest.
Unemployed labourer, Robert McGladdery was soon a suspect. He told the police that he had left the
dancehall at 1.50 am. and was wearing a dark suit. Witnesses said he left at 1.30 am. and according to P.C. Adams, who had looked in to see that
everyone was behaving, he was wearing a light suit. He had stolen a bicycle belonging to John McClenachan and ridden to Damolly
crossroads to ambush
When interviewed he stated he had worn a dark blue suit but
other people at the dance, including Constable Adams, said he wore a light coloured one. There was insufficient evidence to charge McGladdery at this stage so he was released. However he was put under discreet surveillance
and was seen to go to some undergrowth close by his house on the 10th of
February. The following day, the police discovered, hidden inside a pillow
case, his light coloured overcoat and waistcoat plus
a handkerchief, all of which were heavily bloodstained. McGladdery
was now arrested and charged with
Trial and execution.
He was tried at Downpatrick between the 9th and
16th of October before Lord Justice Curran.
The Attorney General, W. B. Maginess led for
the prosecution with James Brown defending.
13 witnesses were called to tell the jury what McGladdery
was wearing on the night of the murder.
In his closing statement Mr. Maginess told the jury
“The Crown suggests the sum total of the evidence points in one direction only.
We suggest that McGladdery foully and deliberately
murdered this young girl. "The removal of the clothes suggests a sexual
motive and you may come to the conclusion that passion started this affair. Unrequited passion leading to hate and anger.” “On that lonely road this man made
that vicious attack; dragged her up Primrose Hill, stripped her and murdered
her, then threw her dead body into a clump of bushes.” Lord Justice Curran took two hours to deliver
his summing up, after which the all male jury retired for just 40 minutes to
reach their verdict. When asked if he
had anything to say, before sentencing, McGladdery replied:
“Well my Lord, there are a lot of things I could say, but I don’t think it
would make any difference now.” “But I would say one thing. There is no man in
the court that can say I killed Pearl Gamble because I didn’t. I am innocent of
that crime. That is all I have to say.”
Initially he was to have been hanged on November the 7th. However he appealed his conviction which was
dismissed after five hours of discussion.
He further appealed for clemency to Brian Faulkner, the Home Affairs
minister and this too was rejected on the 5th of December.
On the night before his execution he made a full confession
to the Presbyterian chaplain the Rev. William Vance and asked for it to be made
public. (Vance would not have been able
to do this without McGladdery’s permission)
McGladdery was hanged by Harry Allen at
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