Gun Alley Murder
| Gun Alley Murder | |
|---|---|
Victim Alma Tirtschke | |
| Location | Melbourne, Australia |
| Date | 30 December 1921 |
Attack type | Child murder by strangulation, child rape |
| Victim | Nell Alma Tirtschke, aged 12 |
| Accused | George Murphy (posthumously accused) |
| Convicted | Colin Campbell Eadie Ross (posthumously pardoned) |
| Verdict |
|
| Convictions | Murder |
| Burial | Tirtschke: Brighton Cemetery Ross: Bendigo Public Cemetery |
| Sentence | Death |
The Gun Alley Murder was the rape and murder of 12-year-old Alma Tirtschke in Melbourne, Australia, in 1921. She was a schoolgirl who attended Hawthorn West High School and had last been seen alive close to a drinking establishment, the Australian Wine Saloon; under these circumstances, her murder caused a sensation.
More recently, the case has become well known as a miscarriage of justice. 29-year old Colin Campbell Ross was convicted and executed for Tirtschke's murder, but professed his innocence until his death. When the case was re-examined decades later, DNA evidence confirmed Ross's innocence, and in 2008 he was granted a posthumous pardon. Since Ross's arrest, Tirtschke's family believed that Ross was innocent and that the wrong man had been convicted for Tirtschke's murder.