Norman E. Kimme

Norman E. Kimme, a 28-year-old male inmate at Menard State Penitentiary in Chester, Illinois, met a violent end on August 10, 1951. Kimme, a Navy veteran, was serving a 14-year sentence for the murder of his girlfriend when he was found dead in the engine room of one of the prison buildings. His body bore multiple head injuries inflicted by an iron rod, indicating a brutal attack.

The investigation into Kimme’s death quickly led to another inmate, Lester Harrison, who admitted to the ki ...