Imperial Valley press., 1930-02-21
WOMAN
SLAYER
HANGED
Mrs. Dugan Executed at
Arizona State Prison
Early This Morning
ASSERTS INNOCENCE
Doomed Woman Retains
COmpOsure Throughout
Entire Ordeal
BY DENNIS LANDRY
United Press Staff Correspondent

STATE PENITENTIARY, FLOR
TNCE, Ariz., Feb. 2l. U.P - The
first woman ever to be executed by
the state Of Arizona - Mrs. Eva
Dugan, 50, was dropped to her death
from n gallows here today.
Her body, draped only in a cheap
wrapper-for she decided at the last
moment the shroud she made with
her own hands "might get mussed"
Went through the trap Al Oil a. M.
She fell through a hole in the
floor of the execution chamber to
7 room below. Death was instan-
tancous
In the room where she died for
:fe murder in 1927 of A. ]. Mathis,
Tucson rancher, were the pictures
Df l6-all men. who were hanged on
thc same gallows.
Around each picture was the
moose which caused death, and to-
morrow Mrs. Dugan's picture and
lcr moose viii be placed among the
giim collection.
Mrs. Dugan appeared to be the
almcst one in the assembly as she
..ntcrcd the death chamber.
She paused ct the foot of the gal.
Dws aral shook her head in the
negative when warden Lorenzo
Wright asked her If she had any
hing to say.
"You're good scout" the ward
en- said as he shook hands with her
With guard ON each side she
walked firmly up the l3 steps to
'hc gallows. one guard adjusted the
moose. another pulled Il black hood
over her face and the trap was
sprung.
Five witnesses, two Of them WON
III, tainted
Women Present
Although there were five women
in the chamber at the time of the
execution. 1t WAS the first time in
the history of Arizona that an exc
cution was witnessed hy women.
Immediately after she went to
death, the Rev, Walter Huffman,
who gave her spiritual solacc to the
pallONS, SIlbhf 10 inv - w II HtNS'N
in the death chamber.
"Now," he said. "Pleasc take a
good look and see what capital pun
ishmcnt does"
Mrs. Dugan maintained her inno-
cense to the very last.
Just II few minutes before she
started the walk to the galows she
admitted reporters to the death cell.
"Shoot your questions boys, there
isn't muclrtime left" she said Then
she added: "I'm not guilty. That's
about all have to say"
70 the last moment, Mrs. Dugan,
once known as "Eva Davis" in her
dance hall days at Juneau, Alaska,
was calm.
She played cards until almost mid
Light with two women from Tucson
and then she prepared her last meals,
Refusing offers of aid from pris-
on officials she cooked an oyster
stew over the heater in her cell. A
glass of orange juice was the only
other thing she took
She left the women's ward at |
n. m, after having passed last greet
ings with her friends.
Before she went to the gallows,
he admitted to reporters that she
had "faith in religion"
A last minute rumOr that Mrs.
nugan intended to take poison to
cheat the gallows sent guards to
search her cell.
al won't cheat" she told them.
I'll 90 to the gallows like n man."
Governor Calls
Wright, the warden, appeared to
be more upset by the hanging than
Mrs. Dugan.
He told reporters that he had been
failing through a trap for the past
10 days"
The warden reported that he re-
ceived a telephone call at | a. m.
from Governor Phillips.
"What am | going to do'" he re-
ported his conversation to the gov
rnor. "WeIl hang her although God
knows we hate to do it,"
"She was the best prisoner we ever
had here" the warden said.
Mrs. Dugan lost her chance for
life in an asylum or the state penn
lcntiary when a jury of IL men
late last Wednesday reached the
decision that she was sane.
The state board of pardons aud
paroles previously had refused to
how her mercy and late Thursday
her attorney decided that it was
rpeless to attempt to take the ease
TO the board again.
Under the Arizona law, Governor
Phillips was not permitted to give
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