Heartbreaking Story About Joe Arridy, “The Happiest Man Who Ever Lived On Death Row”

Society is improving every day as justice is rigorously and seriously upheld. However, looking back at the past, there have been many cases of wrongful convictions that have shocked the public and brought tears to many. Joe Arridy, a mentally handicapped young man with an IQ of 46, is one of those heartbreaking cases.

Blissfully unaware what the death is, Joe Arridy was affectionately referred to by his prison warden Roy Best as “the happiest man who ever lived on death row.”

The tragic attack on the Drain family

On the night of August 14, 1936, the Drain family in Pueblo, Colorado, experienced a horrific attack. While their parents were away, 15-year-old Dorothy and her 12-year-old sister Barbara were brutally assaulted in their sleep.

An intruder broke into their home and attacked the girls with what was believed to be a hatchet. Dorothy also suffered a sexual assault and tragically succumbed to her injuries while Barbara miraculously survived. Their younger brother, who was sleeping in a nearby room, was not harmed.

This dreadful incident left the community in shock. The Drain family had been living in Pueblo, a normally peaceful town. So, what happened?

The investigation and subsequent arrest of Joe Arridy

The brutal attack on the Drain sisters threw the town into chaos. Newspapers quickly warned that a dangerous, sex-crazed murderer was on the loose. Police began a frantic search, focusing on any “Mexican”-looking men based on descriptions from two other women who claimed assaults near the Drain house.

According to other sources, a runaway from the same school later told workers that he and Joe Arridy had only been in Pueblo once, late on August 16. Arridy never left the railyard and got on a train to Denver shortly after.

At that time, police, especially Laramie County Sheriff George Carroll, were under immense pressure to catch the killer. They were relieved when Joe Arridy reportedly confessed to the murders outright.

On August 26, 1936, two railroad detectives arrested Joe Arridy after seeing him wandering around the railyards. Arridy was taken to jail and questioned by Sheriff George Carroll. Carroll knew about the ongoing search for suspects in the Drain murder case. When Arridy mentioned that he had traveled through Pueblo on a train after leaving Grand Junction, Colorado, Carroll started asking him about the Drain case. Carroll claimed that Arridy confessed to the crime.

He then contacted Pueblo Police Chief Arthur Grady before informing the local press. On August 27, newspapers reported that Arridy had been named the sole suspect in the Drain attacks.

The wrongful conviction

Some newspapers reported that Joe Arridy’s parents were cousins, possibly contributing to his “imbecility.” Psychological tests suggested that inbreeding affected Joe, with his mother Mary being “probably feeble-minded” and his younger brother George deemed a “high moron.”

At age 10, Arridy was committed to the Colorado State Home and Training School for Mental Defectives in Grand Junction. He spent several years in and out of the institution until he ran away at age 21.

Joe Arridy didn’t play with the other kids in his neighborhood. Instead, he liked to wander around town, hammer nails, and make mud pies. He spoke slowly, couldn’t identify colors, and struggled to repeat sentences longer than a few words.The superintendent of the state home where Joe lived recalled that he was “often taken advantage of by the other boys.” They even got him to confess to stealing cigarettes, something he couldn’t possibly have done.

Sheriff Carroll might have realized something others did too: Joe Arridy was highly suggestible but he didn’t even bother to document Arridy’s confession. During the trial, even the prosecution noted, “You had to, what we commonly say, ‘pry’ everything out of him?” Carroll’s leading questions were coercive, like asking Arridy if he liked girls and then immediately following with, “If you like girls so well, why do you hurt them?”

Due to such unfair and coercive questioning, Arridy’s testimony changed based on who was interrogating him. He didn’t know the basic details of the murders until they were fed to him, such as the fact that the weapon used was an ax.

It should have been obvious to everyone involved that Joe Arridy wasn’t guilty and that another man actually was. It turns out that the person actually responsible for the killings was 33-year-old Frank Aguilar, a laborer with the Works Progress Administration from Mexico. Aguilar had worked for the father of the Drain girls and was fired shortly before the attack.

Aguilar was found guilty of the murders and was executed after being identified by Barbara Drain. However, local law enforcement was convinced that Aguilar and Arridy were partners in the crimes though Aguilar told police he had never seen or met Arridy. Despite the clear evidence pointing to Aguilar, Arridy’s vulnerability and suggestibility led to his wrongful conviction.

Joe Arridy’s final meal

When asked about his upcoming execution, Arridy appeared confused and unaware of what was happening. He didn’t grasp the idea of the gas chamber and insisted that he wouldn’t die. Before leaving his cell, Arridy made sure to shake hands with each inmate, saying goodbye to them individually.

For his last meal, Arridy requested a bowl of ice cream, a simple pleasure he hadn’t enjoyed in a while. He didn’t finish it, thinking he could save it for later. Unaware of his impending fate, he even asked for the remaining ice cream to be refrigerated. He happily gave away his cherished toy train to another inmate.

Led to the gas chamber, Arridy maintained a grin as he was strapped into the chair. His smile faltered briefly when blindfolded for the execution, but he was reassured by his prison warden, Roy Best, who held his hand and comforted him.

The victim’s family chose not to witness the execution, while Roy Best was observed crying and pleading with Governor Teller Ammons to commute Arridy’s sentence before the execution. Ammons refused to commute Arridy’s sentence or grant him a pardon.

Arridy’s case gained renewed attention amid efforts to ensure fair interrogations and confessions. Additionally, the US Supreme Court ruled that capital punishment was unconstitutional for individuals with mental disabilities. A group of supporters, forming the non-profit Friends of Joe Arridy, worked tirelessly to shed light on the injustice of his case.

In June 2007, approximately 50 supporters gathered to dedicate a tombstone commissioned for Arridy’s grave at Woodpecker Hill in Cañon City’s Greenwood Cemetery, located near the state prison.