Morning journal and courier., 1882-03-16
House,

Nl. Mr. Johnson explained that the estate had been settled. The resolution was rejected.
 BrGiness from the Senate was disposed of | in concurrence, including acceptance of the amendments to the bill providing for the dis solution of injunotions. The bill prohibiting the taxing of costs hy justices of the peace in mcIe than one suit where the prosecutions could be joined, indefinitely postponed in tic I House, came back from the Senate and ! passed. NIT. Cowles, of Pennington, moved l that the Eonse adhere and it was so ordered. |
 On motion of Nr. Pine, of Derby, the l House voted to ask for committee of con- l ference on excepting the bill amending sec ton 10, chapter ", title \ of the general statutes
 Messrs. Pine, of Derby, and Deming, of Danbury, were appointed
 THE CHIP SMITH CASE.
 At l0:35 Mir. Johnson, of Enfield, called for the special order being on the resolution committing the sentence of James Smith, of Derby to be punished by death May ,, 1882, to Imprisonment in the Connecticut State prison for life.
 MT. Johnson explained the character of the evidence which had been submitted to the committee in favor of the communication. No member of the committee, he said, be- lieved that Smith had been properly indicted and convicted of murder in the first degree. There neither malice nor generalization in the crime of which Smith had been con- victed. Mir. Johnson read from the record showing, ill his opinion that the murder was unpremeditated. The case was analogous to the Johnson precedent at Meriden, when the murderer, when 1t was found that his crime was committed under the influence of liquor, received 8 sentence of life imprisonment. He had in his possession petitions from the family of Sheriff Hayes including his wife and mother, asking for the commutat1on of Smiths sentence.
 Mir. Pine, of Derby, representing his con- stituents, said 1t was his duty to oppose the committees report. He did so not with spirit of revenge or bloodthirstiness but in the interests of public safety. MT. Pine de- scribed the circumstances of the crime, claiming that 1t was a ld-blooded and de- liberate murder. He held that Smith was convicted upon the evidence and not upon the ignorance of the counsel for the defense. He pronounced the view that Smith was de- mented or insane absurd. No one in Derby ever thought or believed Smith was insane or denented The taller who has had charge of him since the murder was not brought before the committee to testify as to Smiths de- mentia. But one physician personal friend of the counsel for the defense, Dr. Doherty had appeared and claimed that the man was insane. Nobody else had ever suspected such & thing. He claimed that every action of Smith showed malice and premedi- tation in the murder. He had yet to learn ! that Smith had ever expressed feeling of re gret for his crime. He deprecated legislative interference in the execution of the sentence which had been justly reached If the Leg | islature should extend it's clemency to so des- perate a murderer, what security will there ! be for the public? The course proposed by | the Judiciary committee is contrary to the precedent established by the Legislature. I He could not believe that the General Assem- | ply would at this point change the course | which it had followed so long,
 ! MT. Fox, of New Haven, the counsel for ! Smith through the trial, made a speech in which he declared it to be his belief that Hayes was shot by his own revolver, which was turned upon him by Smith in the strug- 1 gle between them at the arrest. He denied that the record showed that Smith was des- perate character. He had never been arrest ! ed for horse stealing. Except when he was ! drunk there was nothing of malice or ill-will I in him. Going on he stated that there was
 one member of the jury on the floor of the House (Mr. Tyler, of Prospect) and he ap- pealed to him to vindicate the statement that | the jury were undecided as to the degree of l the crime of which Smith, his client, was l guilty. In the heat of the debate Mir. Fox ! charged bloodthirstiness on the opponents ot l the resolution.
 Mir. Congdon, of Norwich, showed that Smith had had fair trial. The claim that ! he had not would be preposterous. The ! whole State of Connecticut was back of him to see that he had fair and unpreiudiced trial l The chief justice, before whom the case was | tried, had stated that the case was one of the l dearest of murder in the first de gree that he ! had ever had before him.
 Mir. Gillespie of Stamford, said he should | vote for communication on the strength of 2
 letter which he held in his possession from
 Judge Granger, stating that Smith ought no, to be executed on the verdict.
 Mir. Mitchell, of Southbury, considered the communication from Judge Granger 8 singu ! lar one, coming as it did from 8 judge of the
 courts, and favoring the commutation of s
 sentence justly imposed on deliberate mur l derer.
 Mr. Thurber, of Putnam, asked that the
 member of the jury on the floor of the House
 should state the circumstances. He could give more light than anyone else on the ques tion.
 Mir. Tyler, of Prospect, after explaining
 how the jury stood on the q;Jstion of con
 viction, said he should never be able to gc back honestly to his constituents unless h.
 opposed the passage of the resolution. Ther.
 was not shadow of doubt in the minds O
 the jury that Smith was guilty of murder il the first degree.
 Mr. Fuller, of Putnam, stated that he ha(
 not until this morning heard the full circum
 stances of the murder, and he must feel tha if there was @ deliberate and atrocious crim
 it was the killing of Officer Hayes by Smith He should consider it his duty to the State tt
 vote against the resolution.
 Mr. King, of Stafford, said Smith had no
 been properly indicted and if he had hun
 dred votes he would give them all in favor O.
 communication.
 L Mr. ScofieId made speech showing tha
 if Smith had not been properly indicted
 there was redress for him in the Supreme
 Court on writ of error. So far as the mur
 der was concerned there could be no possible doubt that 1t was premeditated, wilful ant
 malicious The State should not interfer
 with the decisions of the courts
 MT. Cowles, of Pennington, favored com ] mutation.
 Mr. Sill, of Hartford, said he voted il l committee for communication because he die
 not believe that Smith committed the murder l with preneditation and deliberation. Two judges of the Supreme Court after calnly
 considering the case had decided that ther,
 was an error in the ruling of Chief Justic.
 Park. Another judge of the Supreme Court
 had said to him this morning that he believed the House should commute the sentence tt
 life imprisonment.
 Mir. Ripley, of Norwich, supported oommu
 tation He made the point that with the
 judge swhom MT. Sill had quoted (the judge!
 name not being given) that there are three judges opposed to carrying out the sentence
 The Legislature able to correct the erro1
 of the courts, and of the State's attorney
 and should do so.
 Mir. Cleveland, of Brooklyn, also supported
 the resolution. The debate was continued by
 Mr. Taylor, of Danbury, and Mir. Griswold
 of Guilford, the latter making strong argu
 ment from the layman's point of view in ia
 vor of enforcing the law.
 Mir. Owen, of Manchester, considered that l the Judiciary committee were leading the
 House into a most unfortunate precedent
 He was not aware that the Legislature had
 ever attempted to review the verdict of a jury, or had intimated that the Supreme l Court was ignorant of law. The Legislature
 had never revised the verdict of jury except
 on the strength of new evidence. The Leg l islature cannot afford to establish such pre- l cedent
 At this point on motion of Mir. Brainard,
 of Haddam, the previous question was or
 dered.
 The question put by the chair and a
 rising vote showed that the opponents of the
 resolution were in the majority.
 MT. Fox called for yea and nay vote,
 which was ordered. The result was as fol | lows
 | Whole number of votes. .194 | Necessary to majority. y..........-.......... 98 | In favor of resolution ........... 62