As Mary Dyer hanged from the great elm tree on the Boston Common, few Puritans felt responsible for her death. Hardly anyone thought the charges against her were unjust. In fact, the on-looker expressed what most Puritans must have been thinking that day: "This is what happens to heretics."

Or - put in today's vernacular - "If you don't live like we tell you to live, we will either kick you out or kill you. Take your choice."

This is the story of Mary Dyer's choice.

Author: Carole D. Bos, J.D.