Paula Angel

Pablita Angel (Paula in English) was an infamous New Mexican serial killer guilty for murdering her lover after he was caught cheating her. She was the only woman (at that time) to be hanged in New Mexico.

Paula Angel was a Mexican-American woman born in 1842 in San Miguel County, Las Vegas, New Mexico. She was the daughter of Manuel Angél and Soledad Crespin of Colonial New Mexico. (It's unknown what Pablita's actual age was, Some say she was 19 while others speculate she was 26 or 27, and some didn't know what Pablita's real name was, Some say her real name was Paula Martin because she'd been married with Miguel Martin for some time now, Very little information is out there about Pablita's life).

Pablita came from a prominent family in New Mexico. She was a shy and distant person. She had currently been unmarried and her mother convinced her to marry somebody so she could be happy and start her new life with somebody. She had many suitors and she rejected them all until she met 25-year old Juan Miguel Martin. She met Martin in a shady place around town that was known for having suspicious people and high crime, They fell in love at first sight in a Saloon, Although what Pablita didn't know was that Miguel was a married man with five kids and had scandalous affairs with other women in the past. When they were dating, Miguel told Pablita that he was planning on marrying her.

But their relationship was cut short however. In 1861, She caught her Lover, Martin having an affair with another woman. When she caught him in his act, Martin told her that he wanted to cut the relationship and move on, This saddened Paula, So she wanted revenge for Martin breaking up with her that she lured him in one final meeting, She hid a knife under her (a Mexican shawl worn over the head) and stabbed Martin in the back, Killing him instantly. Paula was eventually caught and arrested for the death of Miguel Martin. Paula plead not guilty for his death, Claiming it was a crime of passion, But the court denied her request and she was immediately sent to prison where she received the death penalty, She was sentenced to hang on April 26, 1861.

While Paula was remaining in Prison, San Miguel County Sherriff Abad Herrera taunted and tortured her everyday telling her remaining days left to live before her execution, Paula literally became very ill from lack of food they gave her that the sheriffs were afraid that she couldn't make it through the execution, So she was forced to drink Vodka every day in order for her to not pass out before she died.

Finally on April 26, 1861, Everybody from town were excited (Including the sheriff) to view the death of Paula Angel that they made picnics and sat together to watch her hang. Herrera brought Paula to a nearby Cottonwood tree on a wagon that also carried her coffin. He drove the wagon under the noose that dangled from a limb, halted, and placed the noose around her neck. Then, he whipped the team and wagon away." As soon as Paula began to suffocate, everybody was cheering for her to die. Herrera forgot to tie her arms, and she got hold of the rope, franticly trying to pull herself down from the rope around her neck as she was trying to escape execution. The crowd became frantic and were yelling for the sheriff to pull her back up, some were even yelling that she was trying to escape. The sheriff and the remaining crowd, tied her hands and were trying to hung her back up again. Some were disappointed that Paula was hung the second time and Herrera decided to pull down on her feet to make sure she died and the remaining crowd attempted to stop him and It became a futile argument

Herrera didn't let his guard down and said that Justice has not been done. But it was stopped by Colonial J.D Senna of Santa Fe stepped forward and addressed that Paula had to be hung until dead. The crowd backed away and Paula was again stood back up in the Wagon with (This time) her hands tied and was hung again (This time was successful, and on that very day, Paula was executed from her crime.)

Legacy
Paula was eventually forgotten by the press (Most speculated it was because they focused more on the American Civil War at that time than her case) Until 100 years later on April 26, 1961, the New Mexican times published a story about Paula (Called Bizarre Frontier hanging) Saying that Paula will always be remembered as the first and last woman ever hung in New Mexico.

But some people may have mixed opinions about that as there was another woman named Maria Josefa and her daughter of the Pueblo of Cochiti were convicted of murder for the two involved in killing Maria's husband in the 1700s.

There was an episode on the Investigation Discovery channel show that featured Paula on a Season 12 episode titled "Jilted and Jealous" Which premiered on November 9th 2018.

Representation?
Paula may have been infamous for being a serial killer, But some see her as a representation of femininity of Hispanic women of New Mexico (Who was most likely not of pure blooded Spanish descent) and in the American frontier in general.

Shortened Description about Paula
''Paula Angel was the only woman ever hanged in New Mexico. In 1861, San Miguel County sheriffs arrested Angel in the murder of Miguel Martin, a married father of five with whom she’d had an affair. When Martin told Angel he didn’t want to continue their relationship, Angel met up with him one final time, only to stab him in the back — physically. Angel pleaded not guilty, claiming it was a “crime of passion.” She was convicted of first-degree murder and executed under a cottonwood tree in Las Vegas, N.M.''