Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1879-12-06
THE LANDPHERE MURDER.
Close Of tho Trial Of sllas F. Besbe.
\ Charge OF the Court TO ths Jury
Which Retired at ll:so this Foreneon.
The Jury Returns a Verdict Of Guilty at
Halt Past Four this Afternoon.

VET94 EaE<EFl0 eFE-sf~s A0AkV NAO
fence last evening. the court room being .
crowded that there was hardly standin,
room on either floor. A great many ladie
were present. The evening was occupied
With the conclusion of General Dewey's ar.
gunent for the defence and with United
States Attorney Campbells closing argu,
ment. At ten o'clock last evening court
adjourned until this forenoon, when Judge
Shannon began his charge to the jury. He
concluded at half past eleven o'clock thi,
morning, when the jury retired to deliberate
upon its verdict. The following is Judge
Shannon's
CHARGE TO THE JURY. FL
Gentlemen q. the jurH-[After reading
the Indictment the Judge proceeded as fol:
lows:
This indictment contains the charge Of
murder.
1t is first to be observed thatno person
can b~esconyicted Of murder, unless the death
of the person alleged to have been killed.
and the fact of killing by the accused, are
each established as Independent facts beyond
a reasonable doubt.
Murder 10 when 3 person of sound memo.
ry and di.csetion unlawfully killeth any
reasonable creature in being, under the
peace Of the United States, with malice
aforethought, either express or implied.
First, 1t must be committed by a person
Of sound memory and discretion. The person
accused must have . consciousness of doing
wrong, and of course a discretion, or dis
cernment, between good and evil.
Next the killing must be unlawful. The
unlawfulness arises from the killing with.
out warrant or excuse.
Further, the person killed must be "a
reasonable creature in being, and under the
peace Of the United States" In other words,
it must be the killing, Of one human being
by another.
Lastly, the killing must be committed
with malice aforethought, to make it the
crime of murder.
1t is this malice which is the grand criter-
ion to distinguish murder from manslauRh-
ter, and from every other kind of homicide.
And this malice a%forethought, or prepense,
is not so properly spite or malevolence to
the deceased in particular,as any evil design
in general the dictate of a wicked, depray-
ed, and malignant heart.
In other terms, the legal meaning Of
malice aforethought," in cases of homicide,
is not confined to homicide committed in
cold blood with settled design and premedi-
tation, but extends to all cases of homicide,
however sudden the occasion, when the
act Is done with such cruel circumstances
as are the ordinary symptoms Of wicked,
depraved, and malignant spirit fatally bent
ON mischief.
And this mslice aforelhoaght may be
either express or implied from .circum.
stances.
Express malice is when a person with 9
sedate, deliberate mind, and formed design
unlawfully kills another, which formed de.
sign Is evidenced by external circumstances
discovering or disclosing that inward in.
tenti0n.
Implied, or constructive malice, is an in.
terence or conclusion of law upon the facts
found BY the jury. If a man kills another
suddenly. without any pfovocation, or with.
out o considerable provocation, or without
warrant or excuse, the law implies malice,
for no person, unless ofan abandoned heart,
would be guilty of such an act upon q
slight, or no apparent cause.
Whenever the fatal act is committed de.
liberately, without adequate proyocation,
and without lawful excuse or warrant, the
law presumes that it was done in ma.
lice.
And further as to these two words "mal.
ice aforethought" in the definition of mur-
der: the word malice" generally speaking,
ls an intention to do-an act which is wrong
ful, without just cause sr excuse; any
wicked or mischievous intention Of the
the mind; a depraved inclination to mis-
Chief; . wanton disregard of the rights or
safety Of Others; villfu!ness, or a wish to
iDjure others.
TIT word "aforethought" simply means
to think, or consider before, to think or
consider previously or antecedently. 1t
means what Is implied by the words pre-
meditated and prepense, to wit-weighed,
or considered, and deliberated before hand.
To unlawfully kill, "with malice afere.
thought" is, therefore, to kill with a DELHI
esate mind and formed design.
And what is q formed design? AS here
understood. q design Is 9 plan or scheme
formed deliberately in the mind, of the act
to be done; q preliminary conception; an
idea intended to be carried out. A design
has reference to something definitely aimed
at. To form q design, is to consider over
an act, and to revolve 1t in the mind be fore.
hand.
Express malice may, as I have stated, be
proved BY external circumstances. But a
deliberate, formed design to effect death
may 90 inferred from the fact of killing, I'm.
less the circumstances raise a reasonable
doubt whether such design existed.
Do this defendant in fact kill the de-
ceased, George LandphereY This. is the
solemn question for you to determine. If
he did not, this ends the case against him
and your verdict must be not guilty. II he
did. then was such killing without any law.
full excuse or justification? If so, then a
premeditated design to kill him may be in
ferred from fact Of the killing, unless the
circumstances raise q reasonable doubt
whether such design existed.
In the next place, how long before the
act OF killing, does the law require the de-
sign to kill to be deliberated and formed,
y It requisite 10 show that the design was
formed q month, or q week. or Q day, or an
hour beforehand The law and
declares that q design to effect death, SUI
9clent to constitute murder, may be formed
instantly before committing the act by
which IT is carried into execution.
10 celebrating, there need be no sppreci.
able space of time between the intention to