Ed Gein did actually go on trial for his crimes and was found not guilty – here’s what happened

The biggest show on Netflix right now is Monster: The Ed Gein Story. It tells the story of the killer and what he did, as well as going into detail about his early life, and mental illness. However, one thing that was brushed over was the fact that Ed Gein did stand trial for his crimes.

Killer Ed Gein was active in Plainfield, Wisconsin, from 1947 to 1957. He murdered two women, and was also a grave robber. In the Netflix show, we saw him finally get arrested for what he had done. Then, it skipped to Gein being admitted to a hospital and speaking to therapists. But, a lot more happened around this time in real life.

via Netflix

Ed Gein went to trial, and was found not guilty

After Ed Gein was arrested, in 1957, he confessed to most of the crimes he was accused of. Based on the fact Gein recalled hearing the voice of his dead mother, and having hallucinations, he was deemed “legally insane” and unfit to stand trial. This was deemed in an initial hearing on a single count of first-degree murder for the killing of Bernice Worden. Ed Gein was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

He was admitted to the Central State Hospital for the Criminally Insane, which is now called Dodge Correctional Institution, a maximum-security facility in Waupun.

However, a decade later, Ed Gein did stand trial. According to The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, his second murder trial took place on November 14th 1968. That year, doctors had determined Gein was “mentally able to confer with counsel and participate in his defense”. The trial lasted just one week, and was held without a jury.

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Gein was found not guilty by reason of insanity for the 1957 murder of Bernice Worden. At the time, the judge stated: “Due to prohibitive costs, Gein was tried for only one murder – that of Mrs. Worden. He also admitted to killing Mary Hogan.” He was then recommitted to the Central State Hospital.

On June 27th 1974 he was in court again for a sanity hearing. During this, he requested to be released after spending 17 years at Central State Hospital. This was denied.

Monster: The Ed Gein Story is available on Netflix now. For all the latest Netflix news and drops, like The Holy Church of Netflix on Facebook.