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Jesse James managed to evade the authorities for years. His end came inside his own home, at the hands of someone from his own circle.On April 3, 1882, Robert Ford ended his life in St. Joseph, Missouri. James was 34 years old.His name was already known for the James-Younger Gang's robberies and his constant escapes. But that morning, the threat was right beside him.Ford had made a deal with the governor of Missouri, who promised him a pardon and a reward in exchange for taking action against James.Afterward, the news sparked enormous curiosity. Photographs of James after his death circulated and helped make that episode part of the collective memory of the Old West.Over the years, books and films portrayed Jesse as an almost heroic rebel and Ford as the symbol of betrayal.That version leaves out something essential: James's crimes also caused suffering to real people.His end fueled a legend that ended up being more famous than many of his victims. To what extent does the way a life ends change how we judge everything that came before?