The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1879-11-28
CAUGHT IN HIS OWN TRAP.

One Case Where the Insanity Dodge Failed.
From the st Louis Republican,
The law-and-order citizens of this
place were agreeably surprised by the
announcement that Charles f. Kring,
the murderer, had been sentenced to
twenty-five years imprisonment in the
penitentiary, as it has grown to be the
general belief he would succeed in cheat
ing justice. Nearly five years ago
Kring, who is highly. educated and un-
prepossessing young Teuton, had a
liason with Dora Broewser, the comedy
young wife of the druggist who en-
ployed him, and, because she one night
declined to leave her home and run
away with him, he shot her twice, caus-
ing her death and that of her unborn
child. In his devilish rage he tried to
force pistol into her mouth for the
third shot, but she prevented him. For
such terrible murder there was, of
course, but one defense, and that was
insanity. Kring went right to work in
Jail to study the subject of insanity, and
Is probably to-day the best-posted man
in the State of Missouri on that subject,
being well up on all authorities. He
arranged his own case, even going so
far as to write out affidavits containing
matter which was necessary to complete
the chain of symptoms in proof of his
insanity, and buying the oaths of GER
tain non resident parties to such af-
fidavits. On the first trial of the case,
three years ago, he made desperate
endeavor to kill one of the witnesses
against him with chair, and, by order
OF the court, he was handcuffed the
balance of the trial. He was convicted
and sentenced to be hanged, but the
Supreme Court reversed the case on
the seemingly silly ground that his hands
should have been free during trial.
Twice since then juries have failed to
agree on verdict, and to-day he went
to trial for the fourth time. After the
jury had been impaneled, however, he
offered plea of guilty to murder in the
second degree, and, in view of the I'M
certainty of the case and the fact that
the witnesses were nearly all tired of
the case, the State accepted the plea.
Judge Laughlin deferred sentence till
after dinner, and Kring was apparently
at ease. When the afternoon session
of court opened, Judge Laughlin called
up Kring, and, without any preliminary
snuffling or weeping, sentenced the
scientific murderer to twenty. five years.
Kring manifested the most intense sur
prise, and protested, explaining to the
court that he wouldn't have pleaded
guilty at all if he had known he was
going to get such dose as that. He
said his agreement with his attorneys
was that he was not to receive more than
ten years, and that the five years he had
spent in Jail would be deducted. The
court ironically expressed regret that
it had been kept in ignorance of that
bargain but Eliminated that Mr. Kring was
booked for twenty-five years, and that
was the end of it. Kring wanted to
know if it wouldn't be possible to have
the decree set aside and to reinstate
his plea of insanity. Judge Laughlir
assured him that game wouldn't go, for
in pleading guilty, he had abandoned
the insanity dodge. SO this case, which
has cost the State thousands of dollars
is at last ended, and, if Kring ever gets
out, he will probably go hunting fol
those attorneys.