The daily gazette., 1879-11-21
FIFTH EDITION.
OUR COUNTY COURTS.
OYER AND TERMINER - THE
BROWN MURDER CASE COM
MEN CED.
COURT To-DAY--THE sTARkEY CASE
GOES TO THE JURY AND WILLIAM
BROWN ON TRIAL FOR THE BATsoN


GOES TO THE JURY AND WILLIAM
BROWN ON TRIAL FOR THE BATsoN
BOT MURDER.
Specially Reported for the Gazette.
NEW CASTLE, Nov. 2l.-Court met
at the usual hour this morning; Judges
Comegys. WoJtten and Houston Oh the
bench.
The case of State VS.. Sewell Starkey
was resumed ana the Court charged the
jury.
The Court said there coud be no
doubt of the burglarious entry into the
house or of the larceny Of the property.
The sole question then for the Jury 10
determine is whether the prisoner a. the
bar broke into the house and stols the
property OF not. In determining this
the testimony must all be weighed, and
the prisoner must be tried like any one
else. The matter If race should not be-
taken into considerati and should not
| influence the jury. "Whatever may be
said Of IT'S, remarked the Court, sit is not
held hat the jurors Of our State are gov
erned in the rendition Of their verdicts
by considerations Of a prisoners race or
color"
The law places all upon equal footing,
and entities all to the aid Of the law and
| to All equal amount of consideration"
Further than this the law presumes that
| the prisoner is /, nOcent until bis guilt
Is proved. In this case there ave three
important pieces of testimony: that of
Mrs. Rigney, in reference TO her hus-
bands garment, alleged to have been
worn by the prisoner F; the testimony in
reference to the NJ. cktie found In the
prisoners boarding house, and dentifi, d
by him and the evidence in reference
to the diibi, which the defense has ell
deavored TO set up.
The court went on at great length
aud impartially reviewed all the testi
mony.
In closing the chagre, the court laid
great stress upon tie fact that the pris-
oner was 10 be treated with great impair
tiallity, and no suspicion, nor dislike Of
race should be allowed to creep in. The
case went 10 the jury at | O'Clock.
Messrs. Whiteley, Vallandghsm and
Turner, defendants III the case Of State
VS.. "Whitey" Mccall, Peter McMonagal
and Patrick Munday for assault on John
III O'Donnell at the Delaware House,
WILMINGTON, asked and received con-
tinuance TO the next term of Court and
bail was fixed aud entei ed upon q, $3.50
in each case.
OYER AND TERMINER-TIIE BROWN
MURDER TRIAL COMMENCED.
The court of Oyer and 1ermlner was
commenced In earnest at lilo O'Clock,
this morning, when the case of State VS.
William Brown. the twelve-year. old
s..I n1.,I Il
of Samuel ID. Batson, with base ball
bat on the eth OF june last, was opened
d the presence nf His Honor, Judge
Wales, was added 10 that of the Judges
on the bench
The empanellng Of the jury in the
, case at once commenced, and co sumed
about thirty five minutes.
Twenty five jurors were called, and
of these, eleven were challenged, an'
two had conscientious scruples. Tb,
names of the jurors are as follows:
Henry Frazer, Henry Ewing, Levi
, Ka,ts, William Dudley, Edgar X. Cam
h. ii. Mousely, Robert Z. Dennison
Lewis l.. Allen, Edwin e. Won Culin
Charles Newlin, joseph W. Barnaby
William Clark.
Deputy Attorney General Coope
opened for the State, after the indict-
mcnt had been read. The principal OBJ
iect of the State, he said, to make al
). opening address to the jury, Is to pu
them in the possession OF the principle
of the law and make them acquainted
with the facts in the case, in order tha
they may understand the case NOR
clearly. The indictment charges the pri
soner with murder in the first degree
| AZ. L.. la. In ,l,.,,
person of sound mind and possessin
a discretion, kills another with expires
8. malice, aforethought aud intent to com
{. NIT murder.
le The Legislature of our State has di
se vided this matter OF express malice int
II two parts, murder in the first and secOn
degrees, while in the common law tn
first and second degrees of murder
committed with implied malice. Ther
is another kind of killing known q
manslsughter, which is divided into vo
y untary and involuntary manslaughte
and then what is known as justilabl
homicide. If the evidence does NJ
warrant the jury in finding a verdict |
the first degree it may find one in any ,
the other degrees of murder OF man
!. slaughter. Mr.. Cooper briefly reviewe
:. the facts in the case.
Stephen II. Simmons, COL, sworn
is knew both Brown aud Batson, and r.
mem Der the killing; we were playir
ball near Jessup's Lane, and had stoppt
ami started for home; Brown and Batso
\. were together, laughing and joking;
~ laid down on the grass; suddenly heal
Brown call Batson "son Of a b. ar
then looking back / saw Brown hit hi
on the arm with the bat; (bat shown al
iJehtified,) then Batson fell, catching
the bat; ! said to Harry Botson, me
~ he'll kill that boy, and when got the
IL he had hit him two blows OH the side
the head, holding the bat in both hant
caught the bat as il was descendiI
a third time, and handed it to Nj
Brown Brown started home, and Ba
'h son struggled to his feet and was help
home from where / was when the tro
BILE commenced ! thought 1t was abo
the ball which Batson had in his hand
ne Cross-examined-The fight occurr
some time after we had been playi
ball we were playing ball on the top
l. the hill which rose Just back OF the rt
known as Jessap's lane i could plain
see Brown and Batson after CALI
Brown son of b., Brown 50
"give me the ball y Batson threw :
ball down the hill, and was immediat,
les. hit by Brown.
IN Questionable not the two boys ca
W have hold of the bat, and struggle for
possession of 1t.
Answer-Maybe did but ! forge
d. fNotx 4hn hot