The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-06-15
Deputy Sheriff Marsh Charged with
killing One of the Victims of
Sunday Nights Riot.
EVIDENCE WAS CONFLICTING
BUT THE JURY THOUGHT III
SHOOTING WAS PROVOKED.
Verdict Considered as an Ex~oneration
Police Withdrawn from
Street-Railyvay Cars.

81 LOUIS, MO-, June INV III tuc -
drawal to-day of the city police from all
the cars and power houses of the 81. Louis
Transit Company and their return to their
regular beats. there was little evidence to-
day of a street-car strike. The street-car
officials are confident they will be able to
resume full service on every line within a
few days.
Much interest was shown by the general
public in the coroner's inquest over the
bodies of strikers and a citizen killed last
Sunday by members of the posse comitatus
which concluded to-day with a verdict of
homicide, Witnesses to-day testified that
Deputy Sheriff Marsh shot Frederick
Bohne. the citizen in question, but dis
agreed as to the deputy's pr~0vOcation for
shooting. A sensational feature of the
inquest was the conflicting statements
made by witnesses as to whether Police
Lieutenant Stack ordered the deputy sheriffs
to fire on the crowd. Several of the deputies
testified that he ordered the posse guard to
shoot while Stack declared he did all In
his power to prevent the deputies from
firing. The disappearance of Deputy Sheriff
Marsh was a startling development at the
inquest. 1t is believed that Marsh has left
the city. No further search will be made for
him. probably, unless friends of the dead
mai seek to prosecute him, the verdict of
the coroner's jury being considered prac-
tically an generation.
Philip Bauer, the first witness, and one
of the dead mans ~neighbors, said: IT saw
a crowd jeering at a car and a number of
detectives trying to dispense it. One deputy
stood out on the navement and said If INV
one dared to come out he would make an
example of him and show the crowd what
the deputies were there for" He said
there were four deputies standing in front
OF the gate through which Bohne was
pushed. One fired at the gate. Witness
did not see any weapon p~rotruding from in
side the gate. as had been reported.
Adolph Calussen told how the old man
had been pushed through the gate by a
deputy with a CUR. Bohne. he said, was
STOPPING down in the act of locking the
gate when a shot fired through it killed
him. Bohne, witness said, could neither
speak nor understand English; he had
thrown no rocks nor tried to make any
demonstration.
Michael Stach. lieutenant of police. said
the deputies appeared excited. One of them
fired through a door and then ran and
jumped on to a car. Witness examined
Bohne's body and found no weapon on 1t.
and from where he stood could see no
weapon protruding from the door.
Mrs. Susie Buschert, a n%eighbor, said she
saw a deputy push Bohne through the gate.
Afterwards she heard some one cry. Don't
shoot" and a minute later q man, whom
she could not identify, fired at the door.
Witness did not see any revolver pushed
through the door.
Several other persons who lived in the
neighborhood testified about the shooting,
but brought out nothing new.
George korman, a special deputy sheriff,
said: w were coming from dinner on a
car; A woman alighted at Howard street
and a crowd followed her. With Deputy
Strathern l pursued the crowd, but the
woman escaped and we returned. When
walking up Tenth street / saw two deputies
struggling with two men near a gate. The
men rushed in and closed the gate. / saw
the barrel of a nickel-plated revolver stick
ing through the opening in the gate from
the inside. A shot was fired from the
street. l do not know who fred"
George G. Strathern, posseman, corrob-
GRATED Korman's testimony as to the pur-
suit by the crowd Of a woman. Continuing
he said: When we walked up Tenth
street we found three men, dressed as ba-
kers, standing in front of a store. One of
these men fourished a revolver and said
L will shoot the first - tina comes
near me-"
who was that mann, asked the cor
oner.
Hes in the witness room." replied
Strathern.
| Strathern was taken to the witness room
and identified Henry Stretchert, a son-in-
law of Bohne, as the man who fourished
| the revolver.
A. F. Kersten. posseman. gave testimony
/ which was fatty contradicted by Police
4 Lieutenant Stack. After corroborating
Strathern's testimony as to the man in
bakers clothes who was -FOUR jhing a re-
man with the revolver Lieutenant Stack
| gave the command to fire."
| Stack was summoned before the coroner
and asked as to the accuracy of the wit
ness's statement. ut is not So" he said.
II gave no command to fire. What / said
was, Don't shoot These deputies were
all acting like a lot Of Comanche Indians"
| After several other witnesses had been
heard, including Bohne's daughter, Mrs.
| Martha Stretchert, the case was given to
the jury at 1 o'clock. and at 1:3O the YER
dict was returned as follows:
THE deceased came TO his death on the
10th day of June, 1900, at about 3:15 o'clock
p. m. at 1924 North Tenth street, from a
gunshot wound in the head. Said wound
was caused by bullets fired from a gun i'm
| the hands of Robert f. Marsh at the time
and place above mentioned
I'VE further find that Henry Strechert
provoked the shooting by having in his
| possession and fourfshing a revolver. Yer
| dict, homicide"
| Samuel Gompers, president of the Ameri-
can Federation of Labor, arrived In st.
| Louis tonight. Mr.. Gompers said he would
do all In his power to bring about an equi-
| table settlement of the street car strike.