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The Con Doctor Who Tried To Bring An Executed Murderer Back To Life For His Grieving Mother
Operating well outside of the bounds of science, a doctor took advantage of a family dealing with a loss
Con artists who take advantage of others have no shame. As long as they can create a scheme to make some money, there’s almost nothing that won’t be attempted to set the hook. One of the worst examples of this occurred in the 1890s when a doctor convinced a grieving mother that for a price he could cure her son’s broken neck, which had been suffered when he was executed for murder.
In 1892 Little Rock, Arkansas, D.L. Slaughter was convicted of killing his romantic interest, Jennie Love. Accordingly, he was sentenced to hang for his crime; a punishment that was quickly meted out. As his mother was preparing the sad task of burying her misguided son, she was approached by a Dr. Sam Jacks, who gave her so much false hope that he could actually cure the dead man of his broken neck that she agreed to hold on to his body and let him try.
Jacks explained that his methodology was simple. The key was keeping the body excessively warm until the broken neck healed itself and vitality returned.
