AustLit

One of a collection of true-crime stories published as part of an anthology from members of the Detection Club (sometimes called the Detective Club in the US). Helen Simpson's contribution focused on Henry Kinder, whose wife, Ellen, had been having an affair with Louis Bertrand, a dentist in Wynyard Square, Sydney. Bertrand attempted several times to murder Kinder (including, on one occasion, shooting him, which injured but did not kill him); Ellen eventually took matters into her own hands, poisoning her husband. Bertrand was convicted for the crime and sentenced to death (Ellen was discharged for lack of evidence). Sir Julian Salomons argued for a new trial, which was ultimately not granted, but Bertrand's sentence was commuted to life imprisonment.