Hangman (DC Comics) - The Victims

The Victims

The many victims of the Hangman Killer were all law-enforcement agency related, some straight, others corrupt, and they were important in leading to Harvey Dent earning his position of District Attorney, in some way or another. They are as follows:

• Chief Clancy O'Hara - O'Hara was the chief of the GCPD, one of the few incorruptible police. While still a sergeant years ago, he and then-officer Stan Merkel were noted for capturing then-teenage Mario Falcone, who was prosecuted by then-Assistant District Attorney Harvey Dent. He was the first victim of Hangman, found hanging from the Westward bridge with a rope around his neck. (Hangman Solution: Initially believed to be "None of you are safe", but later deduced by Dick Grayson to be "Nine of you are safe", referring to the Falcone family.)
• Commissioner Gillian B. Loeb - Loeb was the Police Commissioner before being fired and replaced during the events of Year One. He was a friend to both Falcone and Sal Maroni, which made him so corruptible that no one prior to Batman: Year One would try to take him down. Found hanging in his own residence with the typical clue sheet being a personal sheet of paper marked "From the desk of Harvey Dent, D.A," which leads to Gordon believing for most of the story that Dent/Two-Face is the Hangman. (Hangman Solution: Two can play this game.)
• Detective Flass - Once Jim Gordon's former police partner in Batman: Year One, Arnold Flass was one of the more corrupt officers on the force, only to get caught in criminal activity, fired and prosecuted for affiliating with the mob. Before his trial, he struck a plea bargain with prosecutor Harvey Dent to testify against Loeb for a lighter sentence. He was found dead outside, while on his cigarette break, of a strip club called "The Cheetah Room," where he was working as a bouncer to make ends meet. Judging from scratches and bruises on his hands, it appeared that he attempted to put up a fight in his final moments. (Hangman Solution: Knows if you've been bad or good.)
• Lieutenant Branden - A former head of the Special Weapons Unit of the GCPD, Branden was fired from the force for suspicions of being affiliated with corrupt Comm. Loeb, although according to Gordon, he was a zealot. Branden was hanged in a meat locker on New Year's Day. (Hangman Solution: And justice for all.)
• Sergeant Frank Pratt - Pratt worked for the SPW Unit up until his death and during Branden's tenure was his second-in-command. After attempting to kill Batman (who had come to him as part of his investigation into the Hangman killings) as retaliation for being punched through a wall during Batman: Year One, he was killed on Valentine's Day. (Hangman Solution: Guilty as sin.)
• Watch Commander Stan Merkel - A patrolman of downtown Gotham, Merkel was involved in a number of drug busts and hostage situations. Back when he was an officer, he was instrumental in bringing Mario Falcone to trial. Merkel was found dead on St. Patrick's Day, hanging on the former property of the house that originally belonged to Harvey and Gilda, making him the sixth victim. (He appears in the first issues of Batman Confidential, as well as throughout Batman: Year One and Batman: Night Cries) (Hangman Solution: A jury of your peers.)
• Commissioner Jim Gordon - Being one of the two survivors of Hangman, Gordon was nearly hanged to death while investigating the sudden activation of the Bat-Signal while he was in his office, but was cut down by Two-Face, speculated by Batman to have been the result of Dent wanting to prove that he wasn't the Hang Man.
• Detective Henry Gustavson - Gustavson was the bodyguard of Gordon following the attempt on Gordon. He was murdered on Mother's Day and found by Gordon hanging over his car in the GCPD underground parking lot. (Hangman Solution: Murder in the first degree.)
• Detective Mark O'Connor - A gifted marksman, O'Connor spent many years teaching use of firearms to cadets. One of the members of Gordon's Special Police Task Force, he was found dead hanging by a rope in the shower of his apartment on Father's Day. According to Batman, had he only been carrying his gun with him at all times, the Hangman would never have gotten him. (Hangman Solution: Order in the court.)
• Captain David King - Another of Gordon's "Untouchables," he was a trusted ally and investigator. While heading into the sewers to try to capture Two-Face, he ventured off alone from the group and was found hanging by a pipe, the date being the Fourth of July. (Hangman Solution: Justice is blind.)
• Detective Laureen Wilcox - A newcomer to the GCPD, Wilcox seemed to be a diligent and articulate police officer with a dedication to upholding the law. She was important in the planning of and capture of Two-Face and bringing him to face trial. However, she was an informant to the Falcone family on payroll, leaking information to the acting head of the mob. During the trial, on Labor Day, she headed up to the courthouse via elevator, only to be hanged by the Hangman. Her walkie-talkie left a brief recording of her final moments that led Gordon to learning the true identity of the killer. (Hangman Solution: An eye for an eye.)
• Batman - While not technically a victim of the Hangman, he does get noosed. While looking for clues, He finds a hangman note, with a drawn hang man, the phrase, "Y_U L_SE" and the letters "B," "A," "T," "M," and "N" discarded. He is then hoisted out of the building and onto the roof. It turns out to be a booby trap in case Batman followed the trail back to Sofia. Batman survives however thanks to the neck brace he wore under his cowl which Alfred advised.
• Alberto Falcone - Formerly the killer known as Holiday, Alberto Falcone was the final victim killed by the Hangman, although he was not killed by a noose. Placed under house arrest, he was wounded and easily captured, then taken to the Falcone crypt, where he was suffocated with a pillow to death.
• Harvey Dent/Two-Face - The Hangman's main target was former D.A Harvey Dent/Two-Face, who was captured and nearly hanged in the sewers during a deliberate arson attack by Sofia on Gotham's sewers. Batman got there in time to rescue him and confront Hangman once and for all, making him the second survivor. Two-Face then kills the Hangman.