Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1895-05-23
HENDRICKS SENTENCED.
TWENTY YEARS IN THE EASTERN
PENITENTIARY AT HARD LABOR.
Judge Woodward Gaye the Murderer of
Barney 'Reick the Full Limit of the
Law-The Prisoner Received the Sem
tence without Emotion.

Barney 'ReiCk the Full Limit of TIL,
Law-The Prisoner Received the Sen
tence without Emotion.
From the Wilkesbarre Record.
The last act in the dramatic and sen
sational trial OF James Hendricks fol
the murder Of Barney Reick was enact
| ed on Monday, when Hendricks stooC
before the bar and heard Judge Wood
ward utter the words that condemned
him to twenty years of solitary confine
ment at hard labor in the eastern peni
tentiary.
Shortly before court opened at
o'clock the prison van ratified into the
court house yard and Hendricks was
escorted into the court room
Judge Woodward took a seat on the
bench by the side of Judge Lynch, who
was presiding over common pleas court
and District Attorney Fell moved fol-
the sentence of Hendricks.
Then the prisoner was called, and ac-
companied by Sheriff Walter, District
Attorney Fell and two of his attorneys,
Mr.. O'Boyle and Mr.. McGovern, entered
the court room.
Judge Woodward said: "The jury
has tried you and found you guilty of
the murder OF Barney Reick. They
find by their verdict that you are guilty
of murder in the second degree Have
you anything to say before sentence is
pronounced on you?"
Mr. D'ppvlo thnn odd roSsoJ hn oo,,,,
and made a plea for mercy for the pris-
oner. He spoke OF the fact being singu-
lar that the commonwealth had not
produced the clothes in court which
Hendricks wore at the time OF the as
sault, and also the mprobability OF the
story testified to by the detectives. He
said it was apparent to all that Hen
bricks knew Simpson was detective
He further said that it was not impos-
sible for the men to be innocent under
the mass of evidence produced by the
commonwealth. In referring to Mr..
Lenahan's plea Mr.. O'Boyle said that
the former had made unfair statements
to the jury and had dragged in other al
legged crimes against the defendent,
which tended to prejudice the jury
against the defendant. In view of the
facts he asked the court to mitigate
sentence about to be imposed.
Mr.. McGovern spoke in similar
strain. He referred to Fishers strong
alib and said the long time which had
elapsed since the commission of the
crime had prevented the defense from
conducting the defense as they would
have liked to have done. He said that
the verdict of the jury was com
promise, which showed a doubt in the
jurymen's minds which the defendant
was entitled to, and he asked the court
to temper the sentence with mercy.
Judge Woodward listened to these
remarks attentively and at their con-
clusion proceeded to pronounce the
sentence.
He said: because of the fact that
there are three co-defendants who have
not yet been tried we deem it advisable
You are sentenced to undergo an i'm
prisonment in the state penitentiary for
the eastern district OF Pennsylvania by
separate or solitary confinement for
twenty years"
Hendricks was at once taken over to
the prisoners corner, where he was
handcuffed and shortly afterward re-
moved to the county prison. He be-
trayed no emotion.
The sentence of Judge Woodward is
the extreme limit of the law and shows
pretty conclusively what the judge him
self thinks of the case. Before the
recent act of the Legislature the extreme
penalty for murder in the second degree
was twelve years.