Live Oak, Florida (August 31, 1909- May 23, 1992) age 82 yrs

Ruby McCollum, born Ruby Jackson, was a wealthy married Black woman in Live Oak, Florida. She was arrested and convicted in 1952 for killing Dr. C. Leroy Adams, a prominent white doctor. McCollum testified that Adams had forced sex upon her at her home. He also forced sex in his office and insisted that she bear his child. Zora Neale Hurston, writer on assignment from the Pittsburgh Courier, was the first to report on the trial. She sat upstairs in the segregated gallery of the courtroom. McCullum was sentenced to death by an all-white jury. Her case was appealed and overturned by the State Supreme Court. McCollum was declared mentally incompetent to stand trial. She was committed to the Florida State Hospital. She was held there until 1974.