Fight:1861102

Jim Highland 138 lbs drew with Jem Carney 122 lbs by PTS in round 62

• Date: 1881-10-07
• Location: Warwickshire, United Kingdom

Highland died from injuries sustained during this bout.

The fight lasted about an hour and three quarters before it was called because the police were coming. Carney was arrested, and detained on charges of prizefighting, but Highland's seconds got him away. However, Highland arrived home with a black eye and acting as if intoxicated. He was put to bed, where he died on October 15, 1881. The defense said that Highland's death was due to liquor, but the surgeon said cause of death was blood in the lungs, a condition connected to the contusions on chest and body. Carney was convicted, and sentenced to six months' imprisonment. Upon getting out of jail, Carney went right back to boxing and became the English lightweight champion in December 1884.

(Dublin) Irish Times, October 17, 1881; London Times, October 18, 1881; London Times, October 21, 1881; London Times, February 18, 1882; Billy Edwards, Gladiators of the Prize Ring: Heroes of All Nations (Philadelphia: Pugilistic Publishing, 1894), 123; New York Times, September 11, 1941; Syracuse (New York) Post Standard, October 27, 1956.

Source: Death under the Spotlight: The Manuel Velasquez Boxing Fatality Collection [1]