The San Francisco call., 1897-12-22
CL.ARA'S EARLY
=. =
EXPERIENCE
4 4 '
-'. IL 4 = II ~ 1 Ii IN
- " II
A.:
i7If9liy History Of the
F%allnners Is Told in
- (gO111of
N!Qst@of% Them Have Been In
sane or in an
Asylum.
The Case. Win Probably Go to the
:.:::.:' jury Before Thursday
-. -: Night.
Oakland Office of The Call.
COS Broadway. Dec 81

y
Clara Fallmer's defense was COM
menced to-day in her trial for mur-
dering Charles Ladue. Her attorneys
are. working solely on one proposition
It IS that the girl has been led to he
heye that Ladue would marry her and
that when he refused and was abou+
TO cast her off she was rendered tenn
porarily insane and did not know
What~ she was doing when she shot
HIM. -:
puring the day Miss Susie White
si4 who was Clara's friend for the
feE months prior to the murder. was
dancing around the prisoner in court
ana very much shocking Mrs. Leslie
the missionary under whose teach
lhss Cara claimed to have been con-
VerteQ in the County Jail two months
ago*:..:.:. ''-@
since the trial began very little of
the. religious phase of the case that
was so prominent some weeks ago
mas. been heard of, and Clara. the con-
vert, at this trial does not appear to
be any different from Clara uncon-
Nerted at her preliminary examina-
ton.
attorney George Reed in his open
ing address followed in detail all the
events of the girls life from the time
she met Charles Ladue He always
TeIerreo 10 her as This little girl -
ana ne told of many incidents show
ing that there has been insanity in
the Fallmer ancestry for two genera
ions. Her maternal grandmother
committed suicide. Clara's sister
Nary was taken to Agnews Violently
insane and died there at the age of IS
Ehyslclans are prepared to testify
mat Clara's mother has been men
taIEy unbalanced since the birth of
her second child and was so when
cara was born. Theattorneys stated
tnat Clara's mind was weakened bv
intermittent fever many years ago
and her brother Charles suffered in
the same way.
Mr: Reed then related that after
promising TO marry the girl Iadue had
wes4ried Of her and discarded her, after
WHlch she followed him to a San
+ Tancisco restaurant and he became
angry and struck her. leaving her un-
conscious He claimed that she was
mentally unbalanced from that time
until the time Of the shooting
Clara's father was her first witness
IA Is chOleric man, and testified
MS wife was mentally unbalanced
~ he had attempted to put her in
IN asylum. Her father said she was
Els good daughter, but upon cross-ex-
animation he admitted that she had
been in the Beulah Rescue Home
ClaEa's sister, Louise, a girl q years
of age, who has been married and di-
VOrced; was the next witness. She told
Of a conversation with Clara to the
effect that Ladue was going to marry
beE: and said she accompanied her sis
ter: to San Francisco on one occasion
for the purpose of buying wedding
. clothes. Her brother RudOlph also
testified as to his mothers insanity.
He+was asked where his sister Alma
n0E1 IS. The court sustained an OBJ
lection TO this question, but everybody
knew: that since the murder of Ladue
Alma F'allmer has been committed to
Whittier as an incOrrigible.
The defense expects to close the case
tomorrow and the fate of the muir
deress may be known by Thursday
night