Halloween night, 1958. Charleston, South Carolina.

Beneath the veneer of old money and polite society, company executive Jack Dobbins was forced to navigate the dangerous reality of living as a closeted gay man in the conservative South.

After a night out at a local mixed bar, Jack invited a 18-year-old Air Force airman into his historic Queen Street home.

The next morning, Jack was found brutally bludgeoned to death in his parlor.

​This week, we kick off our October spooky season marathon by stepping over the threshold of that Queen Street home.

We are untangling a web of 1950s prejudice, a chillingly calculated confession, and a justice system that put a murder victim on trial.

This is the tragic history of the Jack Dobbins murder and the devastating legacy of the "gay panic" defense.

​Research & Sources

• ​The Real Rainbow Row: Explorations in Charleston's LGBTQ History by Harlan Greene
• ​Archival issues of the News and Courier and the Evening Post (November - December 1958)
• ​Historical court summaries: State of South Carolina vs. John Mahon

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