Born to Hang: Justice Denied and Delivered

Gunsmoke: Old West Stories

Originally Aired: April 23, 1955

Born to Hang: Justice Denied and Delivered

In one of Gunsmoke's most morally complex episodes, Marshal Matt Dillon must stop a lynching, prevent a revenge killing, and wrestle with the limits of law and justice in the untamed frontier.

The episode opens with Joe Digger narrowly escaping death after being falsely accused of horse theft and nearly hanged by a vigilante mob led by Glick and Hank Pate. Rescued by Roble, one of the more decent men in the posse, Digger survives—but he is forever changed.

Dillon, learning of the incident, warns Digger to leave justice to the law. But Digger, traumatized and stripped of his dignity, issues a warning of his own: unless Dillon arrests the men responsible, he’ll take justice into his own hands.

As Dillon tracks Glick to his ranch and attempts a lawful arrest, Glick’s wife slips him a gun. Glick tries to escape and is killed in the process. But the real reckoning comes later, when Digger finds and kills Pate in Dodge City—just after the stroke of midnight.

Dillon arrives seconds too late. When he tries to arrest Digger for murder, Digger draws on him—and pays the ultimate price.

Born to Hang is a stark meditation on justice, vengeance, and the cost of survival. It shows that in the rugged world of Dodge City, even the innocent may die with guilt, and sometimes, the guilty never get to hang.

Keywords: "Gunsmoke Born to Hang episode," "April 1955 Gunsmoke radio," "Matt Dillon lynching story," "Joe Digger horse theft plot," "Glick and Hank Pate vigilantes," "Western radio drama revenge," "John Meston Gunsmoke script."

Cast: William Conrad (Matt Dillon), Parley Baer (Chester), Howard McNear (Doc), Georgia Ellis (Kitty), Joseph Kearns (Roble), John Dehner (Joe Digger), Lawrence Dobkin (Glick), James Nusser (Hank Pate).