The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-09-02
The Shooting of GeorgeJ. Derbyshire.
POST-M0RTEM EXAMINATION.
RESULT OF THE coRoNER's INQUEST.

| iuaUe vi the arrest OF WIFI Is. Turner, O
youth who was in company with George ].
| Derb!shire, who, it will be remembered, i,
was shot on the evening Of the 14th of
| August. The preliminary facts which led
to the arrest of Turner have also been
briefly noticed.
| In the progress of the investigation the
story Of the two colored women reached the
ears Of Captain George D. Wise. and under
his directions the Coroner eXhumed the body
OF young Derbyshire, made post-nnorte EN-
examination to determine the direction taken
by the shot, and held regular and exhaus-
tive inquest. Before this was done, how
ever, the two colored girls were before
| Mayor Kelley on Friday last, and then de-
clared that they saw Writ B. Turner shoot
young Derbyshire. .~-
On last Saturday afternoon the body was
disinterred at Hollywood Cemetery, and in
its presence the following jury of inquest
was sworn in: Mcssrs. IL. G. Forstman
Qorcman), W. w. Turner, A. A. Butler, G.
II. Thompson, j. Kuster, IF. Taylor, John
Lauer, r. a. Sheppard, Martin Oelers, a.
Beute, A. K. Barnes, and B. T. Walton.
The postmorten sixteen days after death)
was then made with the following result:
"The load of shot entered the upper part
Of the stomach, lacerating the organ greatly,
and breaking off the lower point of the breast
bone; passed through the diaphragm, cut
ting through the gullet, tearing open the
heart, breaking the sixth and seventh ribs
and splntering the eighth, the bulk of the
| load lodging near the lower point of the left
shoulder-blade. Portions Of the food were
| carried along by the shot and scattered
through the cavity OF the chest. The lungs
had nearly disappeared from decomposi-
ton. The track of the wound could be
accurately traced, and was in a direction
from before, backwards and upwards, to the
left"
The colored women and Marion Sutton
were then examined on the scene of the
killing before. the jury; after which, night
approaching, the inquest was adjourned till
Sunday morning at the City Morsue, when
all the testimony was gone into again. AT
o'clock L. NJ. Sunday the inquest took q
| recess till ) O'Clock, when the labors Of the
investigation were continued till 8 o'clock p.
NJ. to verdict. Writ 3. Turner, who had
gone TO Washington city to see an aunt,
was, with his own consent, brought here
on Sunday night 10y Detective Pat. Woods,
and was present at the inquest. Sunday
night Police Justice White admitted him 10
| bail to appear in the Police Court yesterday
morning. with his father as surety.
Mary Belle Page, one of the negro women
mentioned yesterday, said she saw deceased
when SHOT. Was standing back OF the fence
OF her garden. Could see all that was
going on. Had been standing there
about fifteen minutes before deceased was
shot. Saw four boys coming from the direc-
| ton Of Oregon Hill. This was before she
| went down to the fence: when she got to the
| fence the boys were quarrelling. Deceased
was not quarreliDg much.
There the boy-wtnesSes were brought in
and shown to this witneSs1
James Rowe, Robert Beasley, and Charles
| Clarkson were present at the shooting. J.
| did not know Clarkson's name. l also saw
Writ Turner there. Did not know his name
then. / saw boy shove deceased with his
| hands, trying to make him fight. / think.
Don't know which of the boys was showing
| him. Writ Turner, Derbyshire, ClarkSon,
| and Beasley came upon the gronnd together !;
afterwards Rowe and Sutton came up from
| the direction Of Cary street. There were six
altogether. Rowe and Sutton had each gun.
| Turner took gun from Jim Rowe, walked
| in front of DerbyShre, and fired the gun.
| Derbyshire was standing on ground higher
| than Turner. Jim Rowe was standing on
the right of Derbyshire when Turner got
the gun. Turner held the gun with the
stock to his left side. They were about six
of my steps apart. Sutton was standing 4
| little behind Turner and. to his right. Derby
shire was standing up when the gun went
| or Sometime before the firing occurred
al the boys were lying down. Sutton and
| !tu.re were called over by whistle from
| Turner; he also called to one by name. The
| firing took place about five minutes after
Rowe and Sutton arrived. Mrs. Williams,
colored neighbor, told Betty Gross that
the boys were surely going to fight. Betty
Gross got up into the window before the
shooting took place. / do not know Mr..
Derbyshire's family, but did know George.
l have no relations living at Mr.. Derby
Never had any talk with Mr.. Derby
shire or any of his family about tins
case. Never told any one that de-
ceased shot himself. ! told my mother
and my aunt that Il boy had shot him, just af-
ter he was carried away. have not had any
talk. with Betty Gross about the shooting.
| The boys were not crowded, but scattered
about somewhat, when the shooting occurred.
No boys were between me and Turner. Sut-
ton did not interfere to take the gun from
Turner. Turner fired the gun soon after he
took it from Rowe. ] have never been ar
rested by the police. / left my last place in
order to go to school. Have never been
driven away from any place for doing wrong.
| Neither gun was laid in the grass before the
| shooting took place. I was on the ground
soon after deceased was shot. Nobody asked
me how it happened, and told no one how
| it happened. heard people in the crowd say
| it was accidental. Turner ran away after the
| shooting. He afterwards returned and asked
WHATS the matter?" / know where DR..
Morris's office is. Turner might have gone
| there. He was gone about twenty minutes.
L saw two persons standing at hollywood
gate during the affair, and l think they sa"
The shooting. I do not know that Betty
| Gross saw the shooting. | never haa any
fuss with Turner. Turner had on straw
hat with a wide black band without DOW.
The guns were brought up the hill alter Tue
firing, and the boys asked my mother 10 let
them put the guns in the house. turner
said to Rowe when he got the gun, Let
me have the gun few minutes. AFTER
deceased was shot he said Ill a tolefaply iouu
voice, 20, Lord!" On the way TO Tue
MAYORS Office Betty Gross and myself dld
not talk about the case.
DR.. w. u. Morris: Young Turner came
to me on the day of the shooting and told me
that George Derbyshire had shot hlhlsell.
Turner did not accompany me iurtner thah
Cary street; then Clarkson went with me 10
the place of the shooting. Turner seenfu
agitated. The impression on my mlnd was
that the shooting was accidental. am posi-
tive that Clarkson did not intimate that Der
bysbire bad been shot by another boy. L
saw neither Mary Belle Page nor Betty
Gross on the ground. A colored woman
told me that the boys had been quarrellins
l Il %l>,to hnx- hoI ghnf
| .o,, have heard nothing specitic to dis