Ronald Joseph Ryan (21 February 1925 – 3 February 1967) was the last person to be legally executed in Australia. Ryan was found guilty of shooting and killing prison officer George Hodson during an escape from Pentridge Prison, Victoria, in 1965. Ryan's hanging was met with some of the largest public protests in the history of Australia and led to the end of capital punishment. No-one was executed in Australia after Ryan and the death penalty was abolished in 1985.