We're winding the clock back today to what was probably New Zealand's first ever celebrity trial, one of the most sensational crimes in 19th century New Zealand. Thomas Hall was sentenced to life in prison in 1886 for attempting murder his wife for the insurance money, and then he faced trial for the murder of his father-in-law.
The judge told him he had achieved in the annals of crime the position of being the vilest criminal ever tried in New Zealand. Lawyer Peter Graham has written a book about this case and knows it backwards.
Photo: Alexander Turnbull Library Ref: PUBL-0155-front
