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Escaping retribution after the war, Desfourneaux increasingly turned to drink, a problem compounded by the suicide of his son. He was rejoined as first assistant in 1945 by
Obrecht, who, despite his increasing dislike of Desfourneaux, could see a potential future as chief executioner looming. Further
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and attended his first execution as second assistant in 1909. Following the death of
Deibler in 1939—the latter having died of a heart attack in a Metro station while en route to his 300th execution—he was elected chief and was in charge of the last public execution in France on 17 June 1939, when he
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This execution was also notable as it is one of the few ever filmed, having been shot from a private apartment near the prison. For reasons unknown, Desfourneaux insisted that
Greenwich rather than summertime dawn should be the official hour. This meant that contrary to custom, Weidmann was executed
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in broad daylight. This, combined with the public revelry around the jail (cafes were given an all-night licence extension, wine flowed and jazz blared on radios) and the filmed evidence, was largely responsible for the government's decision to hold all future executions behind closed doors.
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Desfourneaux continued working until
October 1951 when, whilst still in office and almost insane, he died. His eventual successor was Obrecht, who officiated until 1976, one year before the last execution in France; the death penalty was abolished in 1981.
196:, who was his cousin, and the Martin brothers, Georges and Robert. He was also responsible for the first guillotining of women since the late 19th century, including, famously, an abortionist named
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to officiate in public. He came from a long line of executioners named
Desfourneaux stretching back many hundreds of years. Like all French executioners since 1792 he carried out the
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disagreements followed and
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285:"Eugen Weidmann on the website Murder Revisited, June 26, 2005"
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About
Weidmann's execution on ExecutedToday.com, June 17, 2010
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About
Weidmann's execution on ExecutedToday.com, June 17, 2010
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367:. Paris was Yesterday. 1972. The Viking Press, 1972. Print.
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Desfourneaux was involved in further controversy during
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229:"Biography of Jules-Henri Desfourneaux (in French)"
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389:Chief Executioner of the French Republic
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