The Jersey City news., 1892-06-16
A SPLENDID PLEA.
Judge hoffman Asserts a Husbands
Rights and Scores the Ribalds
Who Wronged Stocker.

Ex-Judge Hoffman, in his address to
the jury this morning, said: II have made.
gentlemen, several agr reements with my
self that would never again appear for
defendant in homicide case. The men
tai strain and anxiety wears on a man too
much who has passed the meridian of life,
but no lawyer who has made such an
agreement with himself can keep such an
agreement and keep his oath as a lawyer;
therefore am here now.
"We come to this part of the case i'm
pressed with one fact, that this is case
of life or death. Upon the verdict of this
jury that man (pointing to Stocker) goe;
| TO death or goes at large 1t Is said that
| life and death belong alone to God, but
gentlemen, You today take the preroga-
| tue of the creator, and the life and death
| of the defendant rests with YOU.
| "0n January 20 q woman lay in an
| alley, shot, bat not to death But q short
| distance from her on the street a woman
| lay shot to death. She was sister. a
wife and mother. Arthur Stocker today
| is on trial for his life for having shot to
death this woman.
DIscoUNTING WINFIELD.
"From my more than twenty-five years
experience at this bar, gentlemen. as an
opponent of my worthy friend who repre-
sents the State in this case I know what
will follow my remarks. That poor shiveF-
ing wretch there IStocKerl will be called
butcher and liar. You will be told that
his evidence was delivered for dramatic
effect. This is part of what will come.
Gentlemen, think of this woman who was
snot to deathl But a moment before
with smile upon her face she was drink
| ing liuuor with her paramour. A mo-
ment later and she closed her eyes in
| death. Don't, gentlemen, don't add ju-
dicial murder to this death. The fame
of New jersey justice is known and com
mended from Maine to California. Don't
you, gentlemen. make New Jersey Justice
New Jersey injustice by seudng to his
death man who was irresponsible for
| the death of his wife.
THE UNNATURAL MOTHER.
"Stocker was not responsible for this
death, but who was? l will tall you. 1t
was the complaisant, unnatural mother,
| the guilty participating sister and the two
paramours, Dunno and Bremuer. These
| four persons alone are responsible
| for the death of this wife and sister.
But the law has StocKer in its clutches
| for it and seeks to kill him, who had
heard his wife pointed out with lewd re-
marks Think of this heart-broken man
with his bowed head ruined hearth
stone, and disgraced daughter and think
of your own pure wives and uupolluUed
beds, ana say whether Arthur Stocller
should be killed. Forbid it, forbid itn'
After some further remarks in this
strain. the eloquent speaker said the
Prosecutor had announced he would ask
for a verdict of murder in the first de-
gree. and then he defined this crime From
that he began dissecting the testimony,
beginning with that of the mother of
Kate Stocker, Mrs. TierDey and with one
OF his outbursts of eloquence he said:-
"I firmly believe that no man In this
iurv hox believed Mrs. Tierney when she
said Arthur Stocker had repeatedly
threatened TO kill his wife, While on the
witness stand she had been fiippant and
acted rs If she considered the whole affair
a ghostly joke" Reviewing her evidence
as to threats, eX-Judge Hoffman said,
look at this threat Mrs. Iierney says
Stocker made to his wife: katie if you
don't live with me you shall not live with
any other man, I'll end your life,' and
that for three months Stocker threatened
her life once a week.
A HUSBANDS RIGHT.
"Listen, gentlemen, my wife shall not
live with another man. What would
you say? You would say hands off my
wife, hands off; she is mine by the law of
God and mine, she is mine anu mine
alone; hands off / say, and If that is not
SO then Isay God help he Commonwealth
of New Jersey"
Great applause 10 the Court room.)
Judge Werts sternly sold that If the
applause or any demonstration was again
made he would clear tho gallery, aud if
necessary the Court room. When the
confusion had subsidized, eX-Judge Hof-
man continued.
''If man in your house, gentlemen
threatened for three months TO take the
life of your daug hter. what would you do?
Why, you would hurl him from
your house. No jury that has ever
heard case siuce the Constitution of tn $
State was adop' Ell, would ever hang a dog
on such evidence rs that. Where was
Tillie, the child sister, ali this timeP Why
was she not placed on the staudP The
unnatural mother who saw her daughter
embraced by lewd man, testiled
the sister, who saloonkeepers refused
to admit to their places. testified;
but why did not TillieP l will tell you.
This unnatural mother and disgraced SIS
ter could come here and testify falsely,
for they could be no more digraced. But
Tillie is pure. She has retained her virtue
in this home OF horrors, and she could not
be brought 10 testify falsely. That is why