Omaha daily bee., 1898-01-08
HISTORY OF DURRANT's CRIME.
Attorneys Make n Remarkable Fight
to Save His Neck,


Attorneys Make Remarkable Fight
to Save His Neck.
William Henry Theodore Durrant who
was executed today at San Quentin, gave
his life in exchange for the lives of two
young women, who were members of
the church to which he belonged.
one murder under the law, he was held
responsible by public opinion for the muir
der of both Blanche Lamont and Minnie
Williams, and 1t is felt that his death ex-
plates one crime as much as the other.
Durrants crimes were peculiar in their
atrocity, from any point of view. He was
reared in Christian home, and until the
time of his arrest was regarded as a model
young man of Industrious habits, who was
trying to work his way through u medical
college. The only Characteristic that
seemed marked in his nature was his piety.
He had been a prominent member of the
Emanuel Baptist church for several years
been assistant superintendent of the Sunday
school. In this capacity he made the ac-
quaintance of Blanche Lamont and of Min
ME, Williams, both of whom were destined
to be murdered by him in the church where
they worshiped together
blanche Lamont disappeared on April 8,
1870 and was never seen alive afterward.
She left the home of her aunt Mrs. G. G.
Noble ,on that day to go to school, and for
Many members of Emanuel church assisted
in the search for the missing girl, and
among others was Theodore Durrant, who
had often acted as Miss Lamont's escort.
He seemed greatly distressed on account
of Miss Lamont's disappearance, and at
length expressed the belief that she had
joined the ranks OF the fallen women. This
theory seemed plausible to the police, and a
search was made among the places where
II was believed the missing girl might be
found. Durrant assisted in the inquiry,
which came to naught. Ten days had
passed since Miss Lamont disappeared, and
her friends had almost given up hope of
her fp 20 hon n
was made which led to the finding of Miss
Lamonts body.
FINDING OF THE BODY.
The women of Emanuel church We're en-
gagged in decorating the edifice preparatory
to the celebration of Easter Sunday services,
when the mangled body of Minnie Williams
was found almost naked, in the library. y
of ugly knife wounds and some
rags that had been forced down the young
woman's throat told of the unequal StruS-
gle she had made TO protect her honor.
Miss Williams body was discovered in
the afternoon and late the same night the
first clew to the murderer was obtained.
it was learned that she had been seen the
evening before with Durrant, and, although
there was nothing else to show that he had
any connection with the crime, the police
decided to arrest him. Durrant's home was
visited late at night, but he was not there
His parents said that he had left at mid
night with the signal corps of the National
Guard, to which he belonged, to make some
experiments on Mount Diablo
ward the mountain, and, after completing
their journey by stage, Durrant was found
late in the. afternoon and arrested. But
the news that he was charged with the
murder of Minnie Williams was not first
impaired to him by the officers. A message
was flashed on the rays of the sun by the
in this city, who were taking
part in the experiments of the ignal corps,
and Durrant knew that he was to be
While these. events We're taking place
on Mount Diablo, sixty miles away, n dis
covery had been made in this city which
crying for vengeance. From the first the
police associated the finding of Miss Will
liams' body with the disappearance of Miss
in the church for her body. Men worked
all night tearing up floors and breaking
morning the body of Miss Lamont was
found. A broken door knob and a turned
bolt excited the suspicious of the searchers
church was broken down. Up the winding
stairs the policemen CROPPED their way and
at the third landing, lying in the corner of
the darkened belfry, the naked body of the
girl was found. No knifo had
been used to commit the crime, as was the
the imprint of five fingers buried in her
throat revealed the manner in which the
young woman met her death
WAS a DOUBLE CRIME.
The post mortem examination showed that
murder was not the only crime that had
been committed. The news of the discovery
with incredible velocity, and at O'Clock,
when Durrant, in custody of the officers,
alighted from ferry boat at the foot of
by a dense crowd that was ominous be-
cause of its silence. The police We're pre-
pared for an outbreak, however, and two
Durrant was placed in closed carriage
by fifty men armed with Win
Durrant then protested his innocence, as
he did to the hour of his death, but the
evidence against him accumulated rapidly
against him by District Attorney Barnes
charging him with the murder of Blanche
Lamont.
The trial, which began on July % and
asted until November l. was one of the
most celebrated in criminal Jurisprudence.
. jury was secured and six weeks passed
before the taking of testimony was begun.
The evidence throughout was crcumstantial, |
lut when taken together formed n chain so
,trong as to admit of no reasonable doubt. |
i'he prosecution produced witnesses who
raced Durrants movements on April 9 |
ege until he entered the church with Miss
Lamont. TO all of this testimony the pris-
1ner entered q denial, and In rebuttal pro-
luced the roll call of the college, which |
showed that he was attending lecture at
he hour when Miss Lamont was murdered. |
The prosecution disputed the reliability OF
he roll call and showed that students were
accustomed TO have classmates answer for |
hem when they were not present. AS the |
'aSe became more hopeless Durrant went |
)n the stand himself and, although he |
maintained remarkable composure |
throughout, his testimony on a number OF !
case was submitted to the jury on the |
afternoon of November l, 1895, after having |
Deen on trial over three months. Twenty !
minutes after they left the court room the |
Jurors returned and rendered a verdict of |
guilty In the first degree. The California |
aw gives the jury power to fix the punish |
nent of the criminal. but as no recon- |
of mercy was made Judge |
Murphy, few days later, sentenced Dur
ant to be hanged on February 2l, 1896.
FIGHT FOR DELAY.
Then began fight for delay. vigorously |
maintained up to the moment Of |
execution. Durrant appealed from the |
Judgment of the supreme court but his |
Lppeal was not perfected for many months. |
preliminary proceeding was the settle |
nent of the bill of eXceptions--a very
engthy document.
The defendants attorneys first prepared
heir bill of exceptions, the district attorney
dded amendments thereto, then followed |
requent meetings of opposing counsel to
their differences: the document
vas read by the court and given to the
,rinters, but 1t was August l. 1896, before
he bill of exceptions and the transcript
cached the supreme court The case was
hen placed on the September court calen-
lar, and at Los Angeles, In the following
october, the defendants attorneys not APP
earring, the case was submitted on the
aperS hled
Durrant's attorneys subsequently moved
o set aside the submission. and they were
llowed to file briefs, but We're permitted to
"a "a an A IFN,. |