Teresa Bagioli Sickles
Teresa Bagioli Sickles | |
|---|---|
Harper's Magazine engraving from a photo by Mathew Brady | |
| Born | 1836 |
| Died | February 5, 1867 (aged 30–31) |
| Occupation | housewife |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Laura Buchanan Sickles (1853–1891) |
| Parent(s) | Antonio Bagioli (1795–1871) Maria Cooke (1819–1894) |
Teresa Bagioli Sickles (1836 – February 5, 1867) was the wife of Democratic New York State Assemblyman, U.S. Representative, and later U.S. Army Major General Daniel E. Sickles. She gained notoriety in 1859, when her husband murdered her lover, Philip Barton Key II, son of Francis Scott Key. In the historic murder trial, Sickles successfully employed a temporary insanity defense for the first time in United States jurisprudence, and was acquitted. Teresa was publicly shamed following her infidelity. She died of tuberculosis at 31, with one daughter.