New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-07-19
SLEEPY HOLLOW TRAGEDY.
BUCKHoU1'S THIRD TRIAIc-JUDGE BAHNhGD's
CHARGE To TIE JURY.


occupied about "a hors. giving exhaustive resa,6 Of
tho whole case The Courtroom crowded. The
following charge was delivered by Judge Joseph T..
Barnard:
CHARGE op JUDGE B.uyArp
The last thing which the law TcGurcs rrcyiOu3 20 Tho
delivery OF this Ia YOU il now 70 he I0no ~ o
Court You have heard enc evidence rOdlced here ia
the presence of the accused and OF counsel You have
heard the arguments at tho counsel for the people and Of
Court remains to 10 done beole INC disposal Of this
is LEFT 20 You. That duty ia TO definitely aud precisely
eide and any general law which governs you In arriving
at conclusion upon the evidence after the issue IS
TIE people place upon trial before you Isaac Buckhout
charged with the williul murder vt Alfred Rnr-
forfcs ''' his Ii under '" the law, for for t.
Murder is made Of three things. I'll Of which must
Ocnso charged. Tie people must satisfy you that Al
frcd Kendall was killed, They must satisfy you That
must satisfy YOU that Alfred Kendall not only Killed
by sac Bncke pa iat he e. Tds hed ~ in "'I
did It. The killing alone Is not enough. BnCkhou must
from design, have intended the Geath OF Aled Eehda
made out you cannot cyaio your duty Wiion oSiab-
oncr under law unless no pardoned by the Executive.
rot t Eid Alfred Kendall nj the zine al
ieged i'm The complaint nobody doubts but the trouble
arises under the third ingredient or mIder-WaS II pre-
meditatedl If there was no question OF insanity in this
case U would hardlybe case That would require your
attention Generally speaking, the pr 5Onpr loaded DIS
n in the morning carefully 10 accomplish this purpose.
were ali in Inc house when BurAhou deliberately fires
his gun shoots these two people, and kills the cher with
fine butt of his gun Immediately afterward II there was
nOhng else there would he the ceaTeSt evidence OF nS
creme IN b dc ess at the lime that he had pcp1rd
for and upon persons whom lie had invited there Tor
BIZ our statute says "No person shall he held rcspon
sibe for act committed while in state OF i'm aniy"
and that tgings precisely before you the question mat ~
to he tried II this nan Ia insane, ho s not capable OF
forming legally pTemeditae1 design undeI the statute
that have declared to ycu 50 that this case turn,
solely upon the question whether Isaac Buckhout was
insane nj the time he Grcd the shot which killed Alfred
Kendall But that Is too Indefinite Inc Court mus, sec
that the Jury understand the principles governing
after the precise issue OF the case y stated VOW,
the Language Of the statute IL short anu curt that no
man shall bo responsible for deed done While in state
of insanity" There It leaves It.
Now, Gentlemen, IL Is not every person who shows
queer manner Of speech a,f ttO1 II Is MOI every ccoen
tic person who Is 10 be tr"Iounccd insane Is not
every perOn whose motives arc absolutely hidden from
The ewes of the Jury that is 10 be considered OF unsOund
mind. TIE laY lGs established slorpiy and definitely
what this insanity utaus undct TN, stFtdc; anu 10"
AK Your careful attention to that because 1t the very
thing that you are to apply tbs evidence 70 ahd HGStr
your verdict under 1t ana ACCORDING 70 10, II isSay p.A
lout was alCrEg under such doieCi OF reason from
diseased mind rs not To know the nature ana dlhy OF
the act hc was committing, or IL ne uiu mo" ~,
ard did not know he was qOih@ Wh"t VIZ
wrong. then lie was not responsible; or II te ud
know The nature and quality OF the act ana sun l hot
know that II was wrong ac', ne was hOl respoiape.
II the accused, when lie hlied mo deSeaso, " Dc ~ SUI
state Of mind "a to knO" mat NC uetV vas uH5"4ui
and morally wrong, he il Responsible An accused per
distinguishing between right ana wrong IN tnc artiou
lar act done by lin, be Is Justly liable 10 punishment as
/
insane act, and not merely the act OF an l9ne person
II you comprehend that idea You have the enIe case
before YOU. You row to ind whether Buckbot was
insane at the time he pulled the trigger, aud whether he
knew that the act he committing was Illegally ana
morally wrong. If 10 did know That no matte wn l
may have been the state Of his mind, he IS liable Ike
w rev. ~ now ~ turn to the evidence which dlscoses the
case Of a man VINO lad owned farm who had Tor Tor
months lived upon IL with his wilo mad received visits,
had lived "a his ncghhois lived Lad bad struggles and
pecEUary difficulties had borrowed ana paid money ana
hgd Joined with his ncglbors al general and ordinary
hnsi1e. such as lis Joined in lie had, within
about "a week Of the time OF the holclde ~ lted tht's
people, whom be killed 10 ms honse caLea!y PePTod
Tor The visit aud shove cold calm silent 9eiDefaon
upon the day in question ao"H 10 tho h o ~ r t
suggested TO the general world nothing that would not
at f. tic general appearance OF this case as displayed
by the evidence OF many Witnesses Row me deiohse
something which they produce before You, ana which
goes show that at the time he did this act he was
Now this evidence of sanity insanity divides itself
Although the after events in the Jail and elsewhere
evidence 10 evidence of not the slightest value the
world except as it throws light upon the state of this
mans mind at the time he committed tie homicide. II
II simply shows insanity to-day it docs not bear upon the
mine the sanity 81 the the time OF doing the act
what is there before this homicide going TO show insan-
about which, as 1 understand. there is no
dispute. 80 far his speech and actions went
there i'd OF insanity suggested to any one down
10 nearly the time OF the homicide. The proof starts
with M Brown and is confined to very few matters.
do not detail this proof You are 70 see whether these
decisions about the newspaper nave been established
to be decisions Can they he expanedf Did he have in
his mind false ideas or insane ideaSl or dld he take
foolish view OF his family natterai THIS YOU are TO
establish Also did he SIT upon rock IN such way as
manure in such way "a WIZ enable you 10 say THAT,
the man ar reW te OF No nse
plant OF this down to the time OF the homicide.
Then there is proof Of sickness and OF strange acting
the part OF the defendant Then there Is another spe-
ces OF proof which has been excluded but which has
If ee 10 yon r. il the opinion of the deceased Vie
That opinion is ruled out for the reason that
il the wife here alive, she could not give it,
II you give any weight you should take into consider
alton that II Buckhou was insane and meant to murder
his wife and had premedtated 1t Tor several days it il
manifestation OF his private feeling toward her before
whether the expression OF her opinion to stranger
that her husband was crazy or t ne ought 10 DO taken
hateful and mrirderous and not insane express no
opinion. 1t your duty to declare ms ming sanity or
insanity and you not 10 take 0odys opinion but
your own derived from careful eohsdeIoh Oh al the
TO the evidence Of what place after this It is
liable to this further question After me deed was done
you to consider whether 1t was NOT TO the interest or
this accused person to appear TO have deusOnwhen he
did not have them before the murder. IL throws,
OF course light upon the mental CONDITION OF the man
az the time of the homicide and that for that purpose t
would be sufficient evidence In case you do consider IT.
In looking at these delusiOns you WIZ c0hsluef hat hy
are the same before after the homicide Were there
any delusions before the first trail II moi, why not
Why did not they manifest themselves ' oiel
any proof TO show sepOssessed, sane ana apparently
rational in the Jail shortly after MS eonlhei4enti
Take all This proof aud decide thls question ihe5S
opinions OF the physicians rest upon an assumed state oI
facts. They have not tine slightest "t.ht t 9Vu nave
the facts only then do the doctors opinions become
evidence Understand that the doctors do not swear 10
his insanity. They say assuming certain faCts 10 be
true, they believe him to be insane ana mus they saIe
il where the law leaves ito the jury TO decide the Facts
upon which the question IL basel. 49,,
THAT il the case I'm general The Issue Is as TO the san
fty az th man s The time lie tired the gun III you ind
he was sane at that you must linda verdict for MUIR
der I'm the first degree; II insane, your verdict must be
NOT pIilty because the statute says man cannot bo
held Tor any thing done state of insanity You have
nothing 10 10 with the effect Of your verdict, whether
n kee fe or rows an insane man back upon the COM
mnnity N this man insane and has since become
sauc Ie il entited AT once to his liberty. You have no
o'h't Il rn..n