Ronald Ryan, the last individual to face legal execution in Australia, was convicted of murdering prison officer George Hodson during a jailbreak from Pentridge Prison in Victoria back in 1965. The execution led to widespread public outcry, marking one of the largest protests in Australian history, which ultimately contributed to the abolition of the death penalty in the country.
Known for his stylish, albeit “spivvy,” wardrobe, Ryan often donned expensive, well-tailored suits, silk ties, and a fedora, always eager to present himself as a man of significance and wealth. Described by acquaintances and prison authorities as likable, he exhibited above-average intelligence but struggled with compulsive gambling. It was reported that the arresting officer found him particularly challenging to interrogate, as he remained tight-lipped until the situation became dire.
Born in 1925 in Carlton, Melbourne, Ryan’s formative years were overshadowed by his family’s struggles with poverty, alcoholism, and abuse. In November 1936, state welfare authorities became aware of the Ryan children’s situation. As a result, Ronald was sent to Rupertswood, a school run by the Salesian Order for orphaned and troubled boys. A year later, his three sisters were declared “neglected” and became wards of the state, subsequently being placed in the Good Shepherd Convent in Collingwood. In September 1939, Ryan ran away from Rupertswood and worked with his half-brother, George Thompson, in Balranald, NSW, where he earned money from sleeper cutting and kangaroo shooting, which he sent back to support his ailing alcoholic father.
At twenty, Ryan had managed to save enough to rent a house in Balranald, NSW, where he gathered his sisters and mother to live with him. His father, meanwhile, remained in Melbourne, passing away a year later at the age of 62 due to miners’ disease, known as phthisis tuberculosis.
Upon turning 22, Ryan made the decision to join his brother, who was engaged in tomato farming near Tatura, Victoria, and began frequenting Melbourne on weekends. During one of these weekend visits, he met Dorothy George, who would later become his wife. On February 4, 1950, Ryan wed Dorothy Janet George at St Stephen’s Anglican Church in Richmond. To marry her, he converted from Catholicism to the Church of England, only to revert back to Catholicism just before his execution. Dorothy was the daughter of the Mayor from the Melbourne suburb of Hawthorn. Together, they had three daughters: Janice, Wendy, and Rhonda, while a fourth child was stillborn.
After a few months working as a trainee mechanic for his father-in-law, Ryan believed he could earn better wages cutting timber near Marysville. During periods of bad weather that hindered timber cutting, he took up a job painting for the State Electricity Commission.
Ryan’s legal troubles began when his rented house was set ablaze while he was away in Melbourne for the weekend. The arsonist was later apprehended and alleged that Ryan had orchestrated the incident to collect insurance money. Initially, during a court appearance in 1953, he was found not guilty of arson charges.
In 1956, Ryan found himself in court again for passing bad cheques in Dandenong, receiving a bond as a consequence. His next court appearance came after he distributed a series of forged cheques in Warrnambool. His accomplice was caught with items purchased using the fraudulent cheques and subsequently turned Ryan over to the authorities. He received another good-behavior bond, bolstered by a positive character reference from the detective who arrested him.
Following his arrest for robbery in April 1960, Ryan and his accomplices…escaped from the Melbourne City Watch House but was recaptured several days later. On 17 June 1960, Ryan entered a guilty plea in the Melbourne Court of General Sessions to eight counts of breaking and stealing, along with one count of escaping from legal custody. He received a sentence of eight and a half years in prison.
Initially, Ryan served his prison term at Bendigo Prison, where he seemed to show a desire for rehabilitation. His incarceration proved to be productive as he adopted a disciplined approach to his studies, ultimately completing his Leaving Certificate (equivalent to 11 years of formal schooling). Upon his release on parole in August 1963, he was preparing for his Matriculation (the successful achievement of 12 years of formal schooling) and was viewed by authorities as a model prisoner.
After a brief stint of working as a clerk, Ryan went to lunch and did not return. He then embarked on a path of robbing butcher shops, utilizing explosives to crack their safes.
On 4 January 1964, Ryan, along with two accomplices, was apprehended following another butcher shop robbery
. He faced charges of breaking and entering and theft on 6 January 1964. After being bailed on 3 February 1964, Ryan fled to New South Wales. He later confessed to committing nine robberies across New South Wales from 4 April to 11 July 1964. When he returned home for a visit on 14 July, he was apprehended by Victorian Police early the next morning. On 13 November 1964, he received an eight-year prison sentence for breaking and entering and was subsequently sent to Pentridge Prison.
It was at this prison that he met Peter John Walker, a fellow inmate serving a 12-year sentence for bank robbery. Upon learning that his wife was divorcing him, Ryan concocted a plan to escape. Walker chose to join him in this endeavor. Ryan’s plan involved taking both himself and his family to Brazil, a country lacking an extradition treaty with Australia.
On Sunday, 19 December 1965, Ryan and Walker executed their escape plan. As prison officers took turns attending a staff Christmas party in the officers’ mess hall, the duo scaled a five-metre prison wall with the help of two wooden benches, a hook, and some blankets. After reaching the top, they made their way to a prison watchtower, where they overpowered prison warder Helmut Lange and seized his M1 carbine rifle. Ryan threatened Lange, insisting he pull the lever that would open the prison tower gate to freedom. However, Lange purposely pulled the wrong lever. When Ryan, Walker, and Lange descended the steps to the tower gate, they found it would not open. Just at that moment, night officer Fred Brown returned from lunch to relieve Lange and was confronted by the escapees, but he did not resist. Realizing Lange had deceived him, Ryan jabbed the rifle into Lange’s back and forced him back up the stairs to pull the correct lever to open the tower gate. The two escapees then exited the gate and made their way to the prison car park.
To their dismay, Ryan and Walker discovered only two cars in the car park, one of which had a flat tyre.
Nonetheless, they encountered prison chaplain Brigadier James Hewitt in the car park. They took him hostage, using him as a shield. Armed with the rifle, Ryan directed it at Hewitt and demanded his car. Prison Officer Bennett, stationed in Tower 2, observed the scene. Ryan called out for Bennett to toss down his rifle. Bennett ducked out of view before retrieving his weapon.
When Hewitt informed Ryan that he didn’t have access to his car that day, Ryan struck him in the head with the rifle, causing severe injuries. Les Watt, a petrol attendant who witnessed the escape from a nearby petrol station on Sydney Road, saw Ryan hit Hewitt with the rifle. Subsequently, they left the badly injured chaplain behind, while Ryan dashed towards Champ Street.
Walker then moved…to the church next door. With his rifle aimed at Walker, prison officer Bennett ordered him to stop or face being shot. Walker took cover behind a small wall that delineated the church grounds.
Warder Lange triggered the prison alarm, causing it to blare loudly, signaling a prison escape. Unarmed warders Wallis, Mitchinson, and Paterson dashed out of the main gate and onto the street.
George Hodson, who had been having lunch in the prison officers’ mess near the number 1 post, reacted to Lange’s whistle. Bennett yelled to Hodson about having a prisoner, Walker, cornered behind the low church boundary wall. Hodson ran toward Walker and picked up his pipe. Engaging in a struggle, Hodson grappled with Walker, but the escapee managed to break free. In response, Hodson began striking Walker over the head with the pipe. Although Walker was a quicker runner, Hodson continued to pursue him, pipe still in hand, as both men raced toward the armed Ronald Ryan.
Amidst this, chaos was escalating at the busy intersection of Sydney Road and O’Hea Street, where armed Ryan waved his rifle, attempting to stop cars to commandeer them, while people ducked for cover among the vehicles.
Frank and Pauline Jeziorski were driving south on Champ Street and slowed down to yield to traffic on Sydney Road when Ryan, rifle in hand, appeared in front of their car. He ordered both the driver and his passenger wife to exit the vehicle. Frank Jeziorski turned off the engine, shifted the car into neutral, and got out of the vehicle. Ryan entered through the driver’s door. Shockingly, Pauline Jeziorski refused to leave the car; after some persuasion from Ryan, she exited only to return to grab her handbag. Realizing Ryan was armed, Paterson went back inside the prison to retrieve a rifle.
Warder William Mitchinson was the first to reach the vehicle and seized Ryan through the driver’s window, stating “the game’s up.” Following him, Warder Thomas Wallis ran to Mrs. Jeziorski’s side and pulled her away from the car.
Out of frustration, Ryan forced Mitchinson to retreat and exited through the passenger side door. He then spotted Walker running toward him, with Hodson in pursuit, pipe in hand. Walker shouted desperately to Ryan that prison guard William Bennett, positioned on the number 2 prison tower, had a rifle aimed at them. As Hodson chased Walker, Ryan took a couple of steps forward, raised his rifle, and aimed it at Hodson.
George Hodson collapsed to the ground after being struck by a single bullet, which traveled from front to back. The bullet exited through his back, approximately an inch lower than its entry point in his right chest. Sadly, Hodson died in the middle of Sydney Road.
With a rifle in hand, Paterson dashed back outside onto Champ Street. Finding no clear shot, he climbed onto a low wall in the prison’s front garden, targeted Ryan, and claimed he fired a shot into the air when a woman entered his line of sight.
Ryan and Walker ran past the fallen warder and commandeered a blue Vanguard driven by Brian Mullins. With Walker at the wheel, they sped through a service station and escaped onto O’Hea Street.
On December 24, 1965, the Victorian Government announced a reward of 5,000 pounds (AU$10,000) for information leading to the capture of Ryan and Walker.
On Christmas Eve, a party was underway at the flat. John Fisher, who knew Ryan, and Arthur Henderson, the tenant’s boyfriend, were present. After all the beer was consumed, Walker and Henderson left in search of more drinks. An hour later, Walker returned alone to the flat. He had killed Henderson in a public toilet in Middle Park, shooting him in the back of the head. The escapees then departed the flat and returned to Kensington. On the 26th, two womenThe pair, charged with harboring criminals, came forward only after Henderson’s death and the escapees’ departure. Eventually, the charges were dropped.
Returning to hide in the basement of their Kensington residence, Murray received money for purchasing a car in Sydney and then bringing it back. On New Year’s Day, Ryan and Walker departed for Sydney, reaching their destination on 2 January 1966.
Once in Sydney, Walker contacted an ex-girlfriend, arranging a double date to meet her and a friend at Concord Repatriation Hospital. This date was set for the evening of 6 January. Unbeknownst to the escapees, the woman alerted the police. Detective Inspector Ray Kelly, along with a heavily-armed team of 50 police officers and detectives, laid a trap for the fugitives.
Upon the escapee’s car arriving near the hospital, Ryan approached a nearby telephone box, only to find it intentionally disabled. He then walked to a nearby shop to request the use of their phone, but the owner had been instructed to inform Ryan that their phone was also out of order. As Ryan exited the shop, six detectives tackled him, causing him to drop a loaded .32 revolver he was carrying. Simultaneously, Det. Sgt Fred Krahe pressed a shotgun against the car window, aiming it at Walker’s head. Walker was captured without resistance.
Ryan and Walker evaded capture for 19 days.
In the car’s trunk, police discovered three pistols, a shotgun, two rifles (all fully loaded), an axe, a jemmy, two coils of rope, a hacksaw, and two boiler suits.
According to police statements, Ryan reportedly confessed to shooting prison officer Hodson. However, these verbal claims were not documented, and Ryan denied having made any verbal or written confessions. The only signed document from Ryan indicated that he would not provide verbal testimony. During this time, Walker was also tried for the shooting murder of Arthur James Henderson while he and Ryan were at large.
On 15 March 1966, the Supreme Court of Victoria began the case of The Queen vs Ryan and Walker. The first day involved selecting the jury members. Both Ryan and Walker exercised their legal rights by objecting to twenty candidates each.
The bullet responsible for Hodson’s death passed through his body and was never recovered. The Crown’s case leaned on eyewitness accounts from the time of Hodson’s murder, with each witness offering differing testimonies regarding Ryan’s position. Eleven eyewitnesses claimed to have seen Ryan waving and aiming his rifle. Variations arose over whether Ryan was standing, walking, or squatting when a single shot was fired, as well as whether he was positioned to Hodson’s left or right. Only four eyewitnesses asserted they witnessed Ryan firing a shot. Two witnesses noted seeing smoke emanating from Ryan’s rifle, while two others observed the rifle’s recoil. Among the witnesses were Frank and Pauline Jeziorski, the owners of the car Ryan entered. Warder Thomas Wallis testified that he saw smoke escaping from Ryan’s rifle, and Pauline Jeziorski reported smelling gunpowder after the shot.
During the trial, all prison officers stated that they did not observe Hodson carrying any items and did not see Hodson strike Walker. In contrast, two witnesses, Louis Bailey and Keith Dobson, claimed they saw Hodson holding something resembling an iron bar or baton while pursuing Walker. Governor Grindlay testified that although he didn’t see a bar near Hodson’s body, he discovered one after the body was loaded into an ambulance.
Detective Sergeant KP Walters recounted to the court that on 6 January 1966, the day following his recapture in Sydney, Ryan remarked, “In the heat of the moment you sometimes do an act without thinking. I think this is what happened with Hodson. He had no need to interfere. He was stupid.”He was advised to stay away. His own actions led to his demise. “I had no intention of shooting him.”
Should the bullet have been fired at a downward angle, it would have struck the road forty feet from where Hodson was injured. This also indicated the possibility that a different prison officer, from an elevated position, might have shot Hodson. Such evidence would raise questions about Ryan’s role as the person who delivered the lethal shot. Nevertheless, the prosecution contended that since Hodson was 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall, he could have been moving in a hunched posture, which could explain the angle of the bullet’s entry leading to the fatal injury.
Despite thorough searches conducted by law enforcement, neither the bullet that caused the death nor the spent cartridge was ever recovered. Even though all rifles authorized for use at the prison were of the same M1 carbine type, forensic testing on the bullet could have definitively identified the rifle that fired the fatal round — each rifle imposes a microscopic “unique marker” on the bullet as it exits the barrel.
All bullets from Ryan’s rifle would be accounted for, assuming Ryan had cocked the rifle while the safety catch was engaged. This malfunction (acknowledged by prison officer Lange, assistant prison governor Robert Duffy, and validated by ballistic experts during the trial) would have resulted in a live round being ejected and dropping to the floor of the guard tower. Opas demonstrated that any person unfamiliar with operating that rifle and its cocking mechanism might easily jam it, and any attempts to rectify such a jam could lead to a live round being expelled.
On the eighth day of the trial, Ryan took the witness stand under oath. He refuted claims of having fired a shot, denied the existence of unrecorded verbal confessions attributed to him, and said he never claimed to have shot anyone. Ryan alleged that false accusations were made against him in pursuit of reward money. “At no time did I discharge a firearm. My sole focus was on my freedom. The rifle was initially taken to prevent it from being used as evidence against me.”
Following a twelve-day trial at the Victorian Supreme Court, Ryan was found guilty of murdering Hodson and was sentenced to death by Justice John Starke, the standard penalty at the time. When asked if he had any final remarks before sentencing, Ryan replied: “I still assert my innocence. I will be conferring with my lawyer about an appeal. That concludes my statement!”
Walker was acquitted of murder but found guilty of manslaughter, receiving a twelve-year prison sentence. He would later be convicted of manslaughter in connection to the death of Arthur Henderson, receiving an additional twelve years.
Once it became clear that the Victorian Government was determined to execute Ryan, juror Tom Gildea reached out to the nine jurors he could locate. Gildea revealed that out of the twelve jurors, three declined to sign petitions: one older juror was firmly convinced of Ryan’s guilt, while two believed in Ryan’s innocence. The whereabouts of two other jurors remained unknown. Seven jurors, including Gildea, signed separate petitions urging that Ryan’s death sentence be changed to life imprisonment. Subsequently, some jurors expressed that they would not have convicted Ryan of murder had they known he faced execution.
Ryan was entitled to enhanced legal assistance for expert forensic analysis, the hiring of expert witnesses, and to pursue a range of appeals and legal recourses available to those at risk of governmental execution. The Full Court concurred that it was inconceivable for a person to be executed before fully exhausting all rights to appeal.
On December 12, 1966, the State Executive Council…Premier Bolte’s cabinet announced that Ryan’s execution was scheduled for January 9, 1967.
Convinced of Ryan’s innocence, Opas agreed to work pro bono. He consulted with the Ethics Committee of the Bar Council to request permission to publicly appeal for a solicitor willing to take his case. Opas was ready to cover travel and other expenses while working without a fee. However, the Committee deemed this to be unethical, viewing it as soliciting business. Opas argued the stakes were high, stating a man’s life was in jeopardy and that he saw no unethical implications in the absence of compensation. Defying the ruling, Opas sought assistance over national radio. He received an overwhelming number of offers and chose the first application from Ralph Freadman, while Alleyne Kiddle, pursuing a Master’s degree in London, agreed to take a junior brief at no cost.
Opas then traveled to London to present Ryan’s case before the Commonwealth’s highest judges. Premier Bolte hesitantly postponed Ryan’s execution, waiting for the Privy Council’s ruling. Yet, Bolte was unwilling to risk a decision from Her Majesty that contradicted the Judicial Committee’s counsel.
On January 23, 1967, Ryan was denied leave for appeal by the Privy Council Judicial Committee.
Then, on January 25, 1967, the State Executive Council confirmed January 31 as Ryan’s execution date.
On the morning of Friday, February 3, 1967, Bolte scheduled Ryan’s execution and insisted on carrying out the death sentence. While Bolte’s cabinet was in agreement, there were at least four members who opposed capital punishment.
Once it became clear that Sir Henry Bolte intended to move forward with the execution, a secret last-minute plea for mercy was made by four jurors. They wrote to the Victorian governor, indicating that they assumed capital punishment had been abolished in Victoria when they reached their verdict, and asking the Governor to use the Royal Prerogative of Mercy to commute Ryan’s death sentence.
The Age, The Herald, and The Sun, newspapers from Melbourne that typically supported the Bolte government, shifted their stance and launched campaigns opposing Ryan’s hanging, arguing that the death penalty was barbaric.
Many churches, universities, unions, and a significant portion of the public, including legal professionals, voiced their opposition to the death sentence. An estimated 18,000 individuals took part in street protests, and 15,000 signed petitions against the hanging. As a protest, the Australian Broadcasting Commission halted radio broadcasts for two minutes.
Bolte rejected all pleas for mercy and was resolute that Ryan would be executed.
On the afternoon before Ryan’s scheduled hanging, Dr. Opas approached trial judge Justice John Starke seeking a stay of execution to investigate new evidence. Opas pleaded with Starke, asking, “Why the indecent haste to hang this man until we have tested all possible exculpatory evidence?” Nevertheless, Starke dismissed the request.
That evening, Allan John Cane, a former Pentridge inmate, arrived in Melbourne from Brisbane in a renewed attempt to save Ryan. Cane’s affidavit, presented to the Cabinet, described an incident where he and seven other inmates witnessed a prison guard fire a shot from the No. 1 guard post at Pentridge Prison on the day Hodson wasshot. These prisoners were interviewed by the police, yet none were called to provide evidence at the trial. Cane was swiftly taken into a conference with his solicitor, Bernard Gaynor, who attempted to reach out to Cabinet Ministers to inform them about Cane’s arrival. Gaynor made a phone call to Government House, requesting an audience with The Governor, Sir Rohan Delacombe. However, a spokesman at Government House informed Gaynor that calls would not be answered until 9 am the following morning, which was one hour after Ryan’s scheduled execution. Gaynor stated that Cane’s efforts had failed.
At 11 pm, Ryan received the news that his final plea for mercy had been denied. Over 3,000 individuals gathered outside Pentridge Prison, staging a protest against the hanging. Just before midnight, more than 200 police officers arrived at the prison to manage the crowd of demonstrators.
On the night before the execution, Ryan was moved to a cell located just a few steps from the gallows trapdoor. Throughout this time, Father Brosnan stayed close to Ryan. In the final moments, Ryan penned his last letters to family members, his defense attorney, the Anti-Hanging Committee, and Father Brosnan. These letters were handwritten on toilet paper in his cell and carefully folded. In the documentary film The Last Man Hanged, Ryan’s letter to The Anti-Hanging Committee was read publicly. Ryan asserted: ” … I state most emphatically that I am not guilty of murder.” His concluding letter was addressed to his daughters and included the statement: “With regard to my guilt I say only that I am innocent of intent and have a clear conscience in the matter.”
At Pentridge Prison, in ‘D’ Division, Ryan was hanged at 8:00 am on Friday, February 3, 1967.
Ryan chose not to take any sedatives; however, he did consume a small amount of whisky and calmly walked onto the trapdoor of the gallows. His final words were directed at the hangman: “God bless you, please make it quick.”
A nationwide three-minute silence was held at the precise moment of Ryan’s hanging. The thousands gathered outside the prison were aware of the execution’s timing when the pigeons on the D Division roof suddenly took flight.
Later that same day, Ryan was laid to rest in an unmarked grave within the confines of the “D” Division prison facility.
Nineteen years post-execution, former Warder Doug Pascoe confessed during a Channel 9 broadcast that he had fired a shot during Ryan’s escape attempt. He believes his shot might have inadvertently killed his fellow prison guard, Hodson. Pascoe kept this information to himself at the time, admitting he was “a 23-year-old coward.” In 1986, he attempted to sell his story, but police dismissed his claims, citing that his rifle was found to have a full magazine after the incident and he was too distant to have accurately fired the shot.
Ian Grindlay, a retired prison governor, stated that Ryan allegedly told him straight out that he had fired but did not intend to kill Warder Hodson.
Sister Margaret Kington from the Good Shepherd Convent in Abbotsford shared that Ryan had told her he shot Mr. Hodson but did not mean to kill him.
Les Watt, the witness who saw Ronald Ryan commit the murder that made him the last man hanged in Australia, has broken a 25-year silence. He wrote to an Australian newspaper, assuring readers: “let me assure you and your readers that Ryan did kill Hodson.” Watt decided to speak out after reading Philip Opas’s comments and his upcoming autobiography, believing that Opas had distorted the facts, possibly implying that Ryan was not the one who pulled the trigger that killed Hodson.
Although verbal confessions are not allowable in court, during the 1960s, the public—and consequently, juries—were significantly more trusting of the police.
In 1993, Harold Sheehan, a former Pentridge prisoner, claimed he had witnessed the shooting but had not stepped forward.At the time, when the shot rang out, Sheehan observed Ryan on his knees. Thus, it was impossible for Ryan to have inflicted the downward-angled wound that resulted in Hodson’s death.
All M1 rifles authorized for prison use were issued with eight bullets, including the one that Ryan seized from Lange. Seven of those rounds were accounted for. If the eighth round fell on the prison watch tower floor when Ryan cocked the rifle with the safety engaged, ejecting a live round, it would imply that a person other than Ryan fired the bullet that killed Hodson.
Ryan provided testimony, asserting that he did not shoot at Hodson, and he entirely denied firing a shot. Furthermore, he refuted the supposed verbal confessions attributed to him. Dr. Opas stated that Ryan’s last words to him were, “We’ve all got to go sometime, but I don’t want to go this way for something I didn’t do.“
On 23 August 2008, Dr. Philip Opas QC passed away at the age of 91 after a prolonged illness. Until his last moments, Opas steadfastly maintained Ryan’s innocence.
Mr. Justice Starke, the judge presiding over Ryan’s trial, held a strong belief in Ryan’s guilt but was opposed to the death penalty. He remained troubled about Ryan’s execution until his death in 1992 and frequently inquired with colleagues regarding the correctness of his decision. In a 2005 film, Brian Bourke, junior to Philips Opas during the trial, remarked, One of the problems of Ryan’s trial was an alleged admission that he made on the plane back to the homicide fellows. Those sorts of things can’t happen now because they need to be recorded on tape. But whether he made the admission or was verballed, I don’t know. He was a pretty talkative fellow; he might have. I didn’t have much doubt about his guilt.
