The San Francisco call., 1899-05-15
.CR|T|ClES THE
INSANITY BOARD
Sequel to an Asylum
Suicide.
MRS. BERRILL'S COMPLAINT
THINKS THE OFFICIALS ACTED
TOO HASTILY.
MRS. BERRILL'S COMPLAINT
Says They Should Have Discovered
That Her Husbands Eania
Tended Toward Self
Destruction.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

SAN JOSE, May 14.-Mrs. Grace Ber-
rill of Fruitvale charges that undue
haste on the part of Judge Carroll
Cook and Drs. Lustig and Reithers to
commit her husband, G. L. Berrill, to
the Stockton Insane Asylum, together
with negligence on the part of the
management of st. Luke's Hospital, is
responsible for her widowhood She
will demand an investigation of the
commitment by the State Lunacy Com
mission and may bring civil and GRIM
inal actions against those she declares
are at fault. Mrs. Berrill has engaged
Attorney John G. Jury Of this city, and
he has been investigating for the past
ten days.
Berrill was a bookkeeper in the
Wells-Fargo Bank in San Francisco
for a number of years. He overworked
himself, and about April 1 was COM
PEELED to take a vacation. On Friday,
April %, he returned to his home in bad
mental condition. His hallucinations
turned to electrical subjects and he
searched in every conceivable place to
find batteries. After supper he started
from home for San Francisco, but his
wife detained him. Berrill attempted
suicide by strychnine and later threat
ened to jump from a ferryboat
Mrs. Berrill decided to take her hus-
band to st. Luke's Hospital, and at
about o'clock that evening she left
her husband there. A nurse was hired
to sit up with him and temporary ar
rangements made. She was to have
called the next day and perfect details
If any change occurred in the mean
time, she says, she was to have been
notified.
At about midnight Berrill became
violent and attacked the attendant
with a knife. DR.. Van Dyke, in charge
of the hospital, called the police and
had Berrill removed to the Receiving
Hospital. He was booked as insane.
Mrs Berrill says she was not notified.
At IL o'clock the next morning Berrill
was taken before Judge Cook and after
an examination committed to the
Stockton asylum. Doctors Lustig and
Reithers were the examining physi-
clans. DR.. Van Dyke, the widow al
leges, was the only witness examined,
although her address was known. The
commitment stated that Berrill was
possessed of homicidal tendencies. Mrs.
Berrill claims that had she been no
titled her testimony would have proved
that the tendencies were suicidal and
not homicidal.
On a SATURDAY beTTlil was
taken to Stockton, and the following
Sunday night committed suicide by
hanging himself to a bedpost. The
widow charges that the haste of the
Judge and the physicians was respon-
sible for his death, for had she been
summoned she would have proved he
was possessed of a desire to kill him
self and the asylum authorities would
have taken precautions to guard
against it,
The widow alleges that the manner
in which BerrilPs body was shipped
from Stockton was inhuman and bar
barous When the casket was opened
at his home in the presence of the fam
lily the body was stark naked, she de-
clares, and on top of 1t had been
thrown some old underclothing. At
torney Jury says the blame for this
lies between Stockton and Oakland un-