The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-01-03
THEROBBERSS SENTENCED
DE LAUGsTER GIVEN TEN YEARS.
TURNER AND PERKINS FIVE.

Judge Falligant's Address to the Pris-
oners in PronOunc!ng Sentences.
He Regrets the Jury's Recommends
ton Of DsLaughter to Mercy-The
recommendation of Turner Not
Recognized 90 How the Sentences
! Were Received.
! DeLaughter. Turner and Perkins, the ex-
| press robbers, were sentenced by Judge
/ Falligant In the superior court yesterday
| shortly after noon. DeLaughter got ten
years and Turner and Perkins five years
each.
When the prisoners were brought into the
| court room they seemed to be in pretty
/ good spirits, and DeLaughter's face wore
smile. There wasn't very large crowd Of
| spectators present.
DeLaughter was first sentenced. When
told TO stand up he arose with a bright,
smiling counte1ance and looked Judge
Falligant squarelY in the face. The judge
| prefaced the sentence in q brief address,
with the feeling elOquence for which he is
noted. You were Convicted said the
| judge TO the robbor-leader, "cf robbery by
force. with recommendation to extreme
mercy. The conviction l consider emil
uouLAJ proper. lou committed q crime
which shocked the moral senses Of the COM
munity and outraged law and order in a
manner worthy Of something beyond civil
lization. You turned your back on God,
society and home and plotted
your terrible crime amid the
scenes of dsbauchery and prostitution.
| You should have, in my opinion, been
found guilty. without any recommendation
to mercy, but as the jury so recommended
you, will give you the lightest sentence |
can impose consistent with duty, and that
is ten years at hard labor In the peniten-
tiary."
DE LAUGHTER IN SMILES.
During Judge Falligant's remarks smile
constantly played around DeLaughters
mouth, and when sentence was concluded
| he sat down in a nonchalant. careless fashion
| and turned toward Turner with a con-
temptuous look when the judge called him
| to hear sentence.
Ia prefaoing Turner's Sc ntence Judge
Falligant told him that he believed him 70
be equally guilty with DeLauEhter in the
preparation Of the robbery and he should
have been convicted Of the first count Of
| the indictment without any recommend
ton to mercy. "Withgall candor." said
Judge Falligant II soy am not satisfied
with the verdict Of the jury
in your cause. consider il
verdict warranted neither by the facts of
the case nor the law as given in charge by
the court. The manner in which you
turned your back on your wife and baby to
live life OF Sit and crime makes your case
less deserving Of consider alton than either
OF your companions | suppose, though,
the sight of your wife and babe during the
trial acted as a mute appeal to the tender
merciesof the jury, causing only a convic-
ton OF tae lesser charge with areoOmmenda-
ton to mercy"
GIVEN THE FULL PENALTY.
Judge Falligant concluded by saying that
! in view OF all the ciFcums tauoes he would
not recognize the recommendation in Tur-
ner's case, and sentenced him to the full
penalty, five years.
Turning to Perkins, Judge Falligant said
he felt more compassion for him than any
OF the trio. 1t panied him to pass sentence
on Perkins, Judge Falligant said, because
he knew his parents intimately and
knew that the prisoner had come
from an honest parentage, with every
chance of leading an upright life. Perkins
was considerably affected during the judges
remarks, and when be heard his sentence Of
five years he sat down with apparent relief
In conclusion Judge Falligant spoke gen.
orally to the three convicts, giving them ex-
cellent advice. He said he hoped the trouble
which they had brought upon themselves
| would prove good lesson, even though
hard to learn, and that when they would
again come forth from prison free men it
will be with determination to lead strictly
honest lives.
DeLaughter sent for MORNING News
reporter yesterday afternoon, and when
seen at the Jail he went into detailed story
| OF the robbery and the causes which led up
to IL, Che greater portion OF which was on
the line OF what he told on the witness stand
| Thursday.
"Turner," DeLaugbtsr said, ''swore 10 a
string OF lies 10 his Statement to the Jury
about my forcing him into the robbery He
was equally as willing as l and even more
so. Turner is no new thief, He told me he
| was connected with the robbery of the
Southern Express Office at WATERFORD,
s. C., last March, and had helped to spend
the money. He Is also an sx~conviet from
the North Carolina psnitenNary, but while
he has record as a thisf he is cowardly.
The robbery of No. was planned some
| time before it was carried into execution.
PLANNED "A LONG WHILE AGO.
''It was not first preached in the Henry
street lane house, as everybody has been
led to believe. When | was keeping the
oarroom on Roberts street Turner and my
self mutually agreed to hold up the express,
and it was only the little details that came
| afterward in Henry street laue The way
it first came about was in coversation about
work Turner said he was tired working
and wanted to make money some other
way. Then the holding up Of train was
spoken about, and a mutual agreement was
arrived at then and there that when fla
vorable opportunity arrived we would carry
it into execution.
ATE ward went back to work on the
road, and when l found Minnie Ward, nv
gi ], at the house with Turner and the
other women be again spoke about the rob
berry, when we decided to go into it at
once. All this time Perkins hadn't been
known in the game. 1t was Turner who
suggested him and got him to agree.
LAYS THE CAPTURE ON TURNER.
turner is the cause of our capture. l
wanted TO keep the robbery secret be-
tween ourselves AID agreed to make the
masks, but Turner wanted the women
taken into the affair. saying he knew they
would never tell l didn't like the idea, but
finally yielded and let Turner tell them
all about the affair. 1t was bad policy,
but it's too late now to remedy
it. Even after the robbery was committed
l wanted to go on into South Carolina and
| make our way west, but Turner would
come back to Savannah.
Then it was that l adopted scheme to
! outwit the detectives. felt satisfied that
blood-hounds would be put on our trail, and
knowing that walking on railroad iron