Joe Arridy, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Joe Arridy

Mentally disabled American man executed for rape/murder and posthumously granted a pardon

Date of Birth: 15-Apr-1915

Place of Birth: Pueblo, Colorado, United States

Date of Death: 06-Jan-1939

Nationality: United States

Zodiac Sign: Aries

Joseph Arridy (; April 29, 1915 – January 6, 1939) was a young American man known for having been falsely accused, wrongfully convicted, and wrongfully executed for the 1936 rape and murder of Dorothy Drain, a 15-year-old girl in Pueblo, Colorado.
He is believed to have made a false confession.
Twenty-three years old at the time of his death and known to be severely mentally disabled, Arridy was executed on January 6, 1939.
Many people at the time and since believed that Arridy was innocent.
A book was published about his case in 1995.
A group known as Friends of Joe Arridy formed and in 2007 commissioned the first tombstone for his grave.
They also supported preparation of a petition by David A.
Martinez, Denver attorney, for a state pardon to clear Arridy's name.
In 2011 Arridy received a full and unconditional posthumous pardon by Colorado Governor Bill Ritter (72 years after his death).
Ritter, the former District Attorney of Denver, pardoned Arridy based on questions about the man's guilt, and what appeared to be a coerced false confession.
This was the first time in Colorado that the governor had pardoned a convict after execution.