Francis M. Carroll Case Data
Compiled by Rob Warden
Copyright © 2006, Center on Wrongful Convictions
Bluhm Legal Clinic, Northwestern University School of Law
Date of crime: October 13, 1937
Jurisdiction: Oxford County, Maine
Type of crime: Murder
Sentence: Life
Defendant’s age at time of crime: 43
Defendant’s gender: Male
Defendant’s race: White
Defendant’s prior adult or juvenile conviction record: None
Victim: George G. Littlefield (Dr. Littlefield’s wife Lydia also was murdered, but Carroll was not charged with her murder)
Victim’s gender: Male
Victims’ race: White
Victims Ages at time of crime: Both 64
How defendant initially became a suspect: Accused by 18-year-old Paul Nathaniel Dwyer, who was found sleeping in a car; the victims’ bodies were in the trunk. Dwyer confessed to and was convicted of the murders before he accused Carroll. Dwyer claimed that Carroll killed the doctor to silence him about incest in which Carroll had engaged with his daughter Barbara and then killed Lydia Littlefield out of fear that the doctor might have told her about the incest.
Date of arrest: May 27, 1938
Type of proceeding resulting in conviction: Jury trial
Date of conviction: August 12, 1938
Principal evidence presented at trial purporting to establish guilt: Testimony of Dwyer accusing him of the murders
Date of release: September 20, 1950
Total days incarcerated: 4,422
How case was resolved: During a hearing on a petition for a state writ of habeas corpus, evidence of official misconduct leading to “a gross miscarriage of justice” came to light.
Date of resolution: September 20, 1950
Factors leading to resolution: Efforts of pro bono appellate counsel
Individual(s) responsible for bringing miscarriage to light: Appellate attorney
Compensation: None
Post-release criminal record: None
