Captured: Portraits of Crime 1870-1930 - Flipbook - Page 67
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DA R L I N G H U R S T
GAO L
A K I L L I N G C OWA R D
Stuart Briggs
MURDER
Stuart Briggs, an unemployed 24 year old from Sydney, was
photographed at Darlinghurst Gaol on 21 February 1899, four
days after he had been found guilty of murder and sentenced to
death. Briggs was convicted of the murder of his girlfriend
Maggie Dutt.
Briggs was the youngest of William and Sarah Briggs’ ten
children. Standing 6’ tall and powerfully built, he was prone
to violent rages — particularly when drinking. He was unemployed
at the time of the incident and had worked previously as a
storeman and probationary police constable. He had been
dismissed from the police force in 1893 after only four months
in the job.
Briggs and Dutt had been together for about nine months.
Dutt was a diminutive woman born in Glasgow of Scottish and
Indian heritage. She lived with her grandmother, Margaret,
and younger sister, Kimini, at 10 Douglas Street, Petersham.
Both her parents had died some years before.
On Sunday 11 December 1898, Briggs visited Dutt, and
accusing her of seeing another man, struck her in the face.
Two days later he had his revolver repaired and bought a box
of cartridges. He also penned a letter justifying the deed he
was about to commit.
On Wednesday 14 December, Briggs came to see Dutt again.
Her grandmother initially refused to let him see her. When Dutt
eventually came downstairs, Briggs asked her to come away with
him — a request which she refused. Kimini, who was upstairs at
the time, suddenly heard several gunshots in quick succession.
She wrestled open the balcony door and saw Briggs leaving by
the front gate. He looked up at her as he left, and she shouted
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