The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-03-14
QUEEN MARTIN CONVICTED.
MR. SENTENCE TWENTY YEARS IN
THE PENITENTIARY.

verdict of voluntary ManslauEh-
Ter Returned by the Jury With the
Added Recommendation That She
Re Given the Extreme Penalty of
the Law-The woman n Notorious
Character of whom the COmmuni-
~ Is Well RID.
oueen Martin was convicted of volun-
tary manslaughter in the Superior Court
Yesterday and sentenced to twenty years
in the penitentiary.
The Jury was out about seven hours,
and il was evidently a question whether
the verdict should be murder or man
slaughter. In returning the latter verdict
the jury accompanied it by the recommen-
dation that the full penalty for the crime
should be enforced. This is an unusual
recommendation for a jury to make, but
does not affect the legality of the sen>
tence 1t was taken to indicate a compro-
mise between those who favored the Sc
,erer verdict and those who favored the
ksser. Judge Falligant acted upon the
recommendation of the jury and gave the
woman the limit.
The crime for which Queen Martin was
convicted was committed Dec. 26, the VIC
tim being her paramour, Joe Hayward
Hayward and his friend had started out
10 see how the soldiers were treating
Christmas" when they met Queen Mar
tin also accompanied by a friend. The
latter was Intoxicated. She was disposed
to be boisterous and Hayward tried to get
her TO return to her room. a quarrel
in ~.
struck at the woman with stick which
he carried and showed her down. AS she
rose and came back at him she showed a
knife into his breast. Hayward swung
around as he received the knife wound
and struck the woman blow in the head
with his stick. infiicting wound which
drew blood Hayward walked short dis
lance away, fell in the street and died
shortly after.
Messrs R. NJ Lester and c. D. Kline
represented the accused, and put up the
pest hSht they could for her under the
circumstances. Their claim was that she
had acted in self-defense, that Hayward
had assaulted her with the stick and that
aIter being struck she defended herself
with the knife. They contended that the
SUCK welded by Hayward was a weapon
bkeIy to produce death
me stick, which played such an import
ant part in the tragedy, had been buried
with Hayward, by an oversight on the
par of Coroner Goette. A hickory stick,
SAID to be counterpart of the one used
py HeyWard, was submitted in evidence.
ana was used by both sides in illustrating
tnelr views of the case.
The most reliable evidence submitted
was to the effect that Hayward did NOT
strike the woman with the stick before re-
celvlng the fatal blow from the knife, that
ne mad merely showed her down and that
"hen she came back at him with the
KNIFE he struck her with the stick. Just
after receiving the knife in his bosom.
Inc solicitor general did not fail to impress
inns view Of the case upon the jury. The
Martin woman has been for a number of
years one of the most dsreputable char
aeters In the whole city. She was con-
Nected with the gang which waylaid and
murdered August Meyer in his stable on
west Broad street about eight years ago.
tAoush there was no evidence to connect
her directly with the crime The woman
seemed but slightly interested in the
progress of her trial yesterday, and when
put upon the stand to make her statement
merely said that she had cut Hayward be-
cause he struck her with the stick Her
departure to the Georgia penitentiary will
Ne an undoubted benefit to the community.