Pep (c. 1923 – 1930) was a black Labrador Retriever who was falsely accused of murdering a cat. On August 31, 1924, Pep was sent to the Eastern State Penitentiary, where he received inmate number C-2559 and had his mugshot and paw prints taken. His log into the prison ledger indicates life sentence for murder, a tongue-in-cheek gesture that prompted widespread outrage. Pep was given as a gift from Maine governor Percival Baxter, to Pennsylvania governor Gifford Pinchot who was inspired by Baxters use of dogs in Maine. Pep was only brought to prison to boost inmate morale.
Upon Pep's incarceration, international newspapers seized upon the murder reported in Pep's police record and publicly declared him "cat murderer." Governor Pinchot and his wife Cornelia adamantly denied Pep's murder accusation, calling it a "slanderous and unjustified attack on his reputation" and a "wretched tale." The governor received hundreds to thousands of letters from as far as the Philippines protesting Pep's unfair incarceration and demanding Pep's freedom. Governor Pinchot assured the public that Pep was not a prisoner and lived a good life at the penitentiary running the grounds, chasing rats through prison corridors, and fulfilling his life's mission of becoming a friend to all.
He was put on a diet in 1927 because inmates gifted him too much food. When he became old and tired, he moved to the Graterford Prison Farm, where he was allowed to spend the rest of his days at the home of a retired guard who begged for leave to care for him in his old age. Pep died in May or June 1930 and was buried in a flower bed on prison grounds. A wooden marker was placed on the grave but was later swept away in a flash flood.
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