Episode 199: Baby Lawrence Noxon (With Jim Overmyer)

Lawrence Swift Noxon was born in March 1943. At five months old, he was diagnosed with what we now call Down syndrome. Three weeks later, on September 22, 1943, baby Lawrence died from electrocution under highly suspicious circumstances. His father, John Franklin Noxon Jr., was soon charged with murdering his infant son in what many considered a “mercy killing.” For this episode, I spoke with author Jim Overmyer, who wrote The Electrocution of Baby Lawrence, the definitive story of Lawrence’s murder and the long, complicated legal proceedings that followed. This is the story of a baby boy who deserved to live a lot longer than he did, and a father who some at the time said wasn’t punished harshly enough for his son’s murder, while others believed that what John did was for the best.This is the tragic story of baby Lawrence Noxon.The Electrocution of Baby Lawrence: A Murder that Shook a New England Town by Jim Overmyer on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Electrocution-Baby-Lawrence-Murder-England/dp/1538181290/ref=sr_1_1 Jim’s author website: https://www.jamesovermyer.com/Jim’s Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/p/James-Overmyer-author-100041727673681/ Jim’s Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B081QRYTRM/about?ccs_id=c7fa7aac-e829-4449-9d6a-e61d26b9b8e0 Photos related to today's episode can be viewed on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sufferthelittlechildrenpod You can also follow the podcast on:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sufferthelittlechildrenpodTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@STLCpodMy Linktree is available here: https://linktr.ee/stlcpod Visit the podcast's web page at https://www.sufferthelittlechildrenpod.com. By supporting me on Patreon, you'll also access rewards, including a shout-out by name on the podcast and exclusive rewards. Visit www.patreon.com/STLCpod. You can also support the podcast on www.Ko-Fi.com/STLCpod. **New! Become a member of my YouTube channel for perks, ranging from a shout-out, members-only chat emoji, and loyalty badges to other rewards. Click here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCogRWoIzWMy7TX5PuX18smQ/join Join my Spreaker Supporters' Club: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/suffer-the-little-children--4232884/support This podcast is researched, written, hosted, edited, and produced by Laine.Music for this episode is licensed from https://audiojungle.net. Subscribe to Suffer the Little Children:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/suffer-the-little-children/id1499010711Google Podcasts: https://playmusic.app.goo.gl/?ibi=com.google.PlayMusic&isi=691797987&ius=googleplaymusic&apn=com.google.android.music&link=https://play.google.com/music/m/I5mx3lacxpdkhssmk2n22csf32u?t%3DSuffer_the_Little_Children%26pcampaignid%3DMKT-na-all-co-pr-mu-pod-16Spreaker: https://www.spreaker.com/show/suffer-the-little-children Pandora: https://www.pandora.com/podcast/suffer-the-little-children/PC:61848?part=PC:61848&corr=podcast_organic_external_site&TID=Brand:POC:PC61848:podcast_organic_external_siteSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0w98Tpd3710BZ0u036T1KEiHeartRadio: https://iheart.com/podcast/77891101/ ...or on your favorite podcast listening platform.If you see something, say something. https://childhelp.org