The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1881-07-21

imprisonment for life, and to pay the
costs Of the prosecution. The follow
ing is a verbatim report of the sen
tence as delivered by Judge Meyer:
THE SENTENCE,
"Joseph Kline, it is with great re-
luctance that l am about to discharge
a duty, which in consequence of the
extraordinary and singular verdict Of
the jury in your case is unaVoidably
imposed upon me, My conscience re-
volts against it. Not because doubt
your guilt, for that the proof estab'
lished beyond all reasonable doubt.
But because the verdict Of the jury
which declares you guilty of murder in
the second degree, necessarily finds
that you p1rpOsely killed your father,
by means of poison, and this our stat
ute expressly declares to be murder in
the first degree; and it provides that he
who commits it shall suffer DEATH
True, tile crime of murder in the first
degree includes also the crime of MUIR
der in the second degree; which last
our law defines to be the purposed and
malicious killing of another, without
deliberatiOn and without premedita-
tiOn. Deliberation and premeditatiOn
are the peculiar elements of murder in
the first degree, and distinguish that
crime from murder in the second de-
gree. Now it is incOnceivable how one
can purpOsely kill another by means Of
poison, without deliberati0n and pre-
meditation; and, therefore, such pur-
posed killing by means of poison must
amount to murder in the first degree
However, aside from this, as stated,
the statute declares in express terms,
that whoever purpOsely kills another
by means Of poison is guilty Of murder
in the first degree, and shall suffer
DEATH" Therefore, the verdict of the
jury which finds that you purpOselY
killed your father by means of poison,
and still finds you not guilty of murder
in the first degree, but guilty only ofmur-
der in the second degree is an incOn-
sistent, illogical, legal monstrosity, and
is utterly unjustihable.
The direct consequences of such
verdict cannot but be highly pernicious
to community, The yerdiCtis themost
serious blow ever received by our laws,
directly tending to deprive them of
their sanction; weakening and hinder
ing their proper enforcement. 1t is a
dangerous assault against the peace
and good order Of society, which neces-
arily depend upon the strict enforce,
ment of the laws. 1t is evident that it
must cripple the administration Of just
Ice IN criminal cases, by depriving the
Court of that respect and authority
without which the'r proceedings must
be powerless and nugatory. l look
upon this verdict as the most serious of
all those unfortunate elratic judicial
excrescences, which have too often be-
come the apology for Lynch law, so
much to be dreaded by the lawfully
constituted authorities of a State, in
deed by every good and law abiding cit
izen.
Hence it is that 1 now would, with
all theenergy of which 1 am capable,
enter in the name Of the State, and in
the cause Of law and order, a solemn
protest against this reckless disregard
Of duty on the part of a jury, this dan
gerOus lnfraction of laws by those
whose duty it is peculiarly to uphold
and enfOrcce them. May this uGfortu-
nate attempt, as it is the first in this
part of the State, also be the last.
Beyond this protest the Court is pow
erless to remedy the evil. A new trial
could only make it worse. AS on this
trial you have been declared by the
jury in their verdict not guilty Of MUIR
der in the first degree, under our
constitutional provision you could not
be placed in jeopardy again by new or
second trial for that same crime; and
were you tried again upon the same in
1ictment as you would necessarily
have to be, and the proof be-
ing the same as that under which you
were convicted, another, and perhaps
more conscientious jury, might not be
able to find any other verdict, except
one finding you guilty of murder in the
first degree, which might render the
confusion still more confOunded and
perhaps paralIze the Court and prevent
it from meteing out deserved punish
ment.
Hence the Court is constrained to
make virtue Of necessity, and leave
this extraordinary verdict stand, and
to meet out in the case that punishment
which the circumstances authorize.
The crime of which you have been
convicted, call it murder in the first or
second degree, is without exception the
most atrocious known to civilized ma
lions; a crime of the deepest dye Of
guilt, known as the crime of parricide.
cause other than the purpose
Of acquiring his property by inheritance
as his heir, you numerically slew that
kind father who had done so much for
you, to whom you owed a debt of graft
tude, which lifelong reverence and
love, coupled with pure nlial affection,
alone would suffice to cancel. The
parricide who has impiously imbued
his hands in the lifeblood of father,
is an object of horror to both God and
man, and marked with stain tenfold
deeDer than that which marked the