Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1900-06-12
THE I | HOULE CASE.
Testimony Taken at Pembina in the
Case Of Joseph Houle, Who Muir
dered His Wife.
Houle Pleaded Guilty, But Testimony
Taken to Establish the Degree s
of the Crime.
Judge Sauter Sentences the Prisoner
to Imprisonment in the Peniten-
tiary for Life.

tiary for Life.
Pembina, June 12-At the term of
court here a large audience assembled
at the court room to listen to the evi-
dence in the case of Joseph Houle who
had already plead guilty to murder in
the first degree. His honor Judge
Sauter, taking the evidence in order to
have basis on which to fix the pun
ishment, which is; either Imprisonment
for life or hanging. But little of i'm
portance was developed beyond that
already testified and heretofore pub
lished. Three step-daughters of
Josephine Thifeault, Mrs. D. Monette
and Mrs. Louis Lecuyer, were on the
stand, ano two sons of the deceased.
All testified to unhappy relations in
the married life of the pair, and the
testimony of Josephine and of Mrs.
Lecuyer, who were present at the as
sault and each of whom were struck
with the club by Houle, was clear that
| Houle was not apparently drunk, but
had murdered their mother in a DELHI
crate manner and had told them, while
he was pounding her, that was his in
tention. 49, ~. -,-,- ~
= Houle's own testimony, --owever, was
the clearest and most in detail, and if
he had been testifying against another
person he could not have told a
straighter and more horrible story
According to his statement the quar-
rel began because his wife would not
get him dinner on his return from
church, then he threw her on the floor,
each had a stick of stovewood, he hit
her first; he broke his club, then got
| the axe which was within his reach
Josephine took it away; then he got
| another stick of stove wood; the fight
| was transferred to the lean-to shed,
| then the woman got out. BY Houle's
| own testimony the assault ceased tenn
| porarily several times, probably at
least four times, and then he went at
her again, Once the woman was lean
| ing with her hands against the build
ing; he dragged her away to the
ground. Again when she was stag
gering along the road trying to get
away, he grabbed the eight foot pop
lar pole studded with projecting nails,
ran after her and felled her to the
earth. Then after leaving her there
in her blood, he again saw her trying
| to rise, and then he went again with
the pole and finished her. The pole
| a most gruesome exhibit, was in the
court room and was covered with
blood for a distance of about two feet
from the larger end.
Houle's only excuse was that he was
drunk and that Louis Lecuyer had told
| him to kill the woman. AS to the
| first statement all witnesses say he
| showed no signs of drunkenness and
the assault occurred three hours after
his last drink. Houle says he had six
drinks of alcohol and water, but Le-
cuyer says he had only two. Lecuyer,
| while not on good terms with his
mother-inlaw, could have no especial
| incentive or motive for her death.
| Houle showed no sign of sorrow or
emotion. During the recital on the
stand he became somewhat excited in
his description. but no more than if he
had been an interested witness instead
of the principal in the affair." Even
when he was todd of his own little boy,
nine years old, the only issue of his
| marriage, coming, crying, in the house
| and saying Father, you have killed
my mother, but will always remem-
Der her" and his (Houle's) reply
We'll, it may be they will kill me
pretty soon, and if they do you be a
good boy and go to school, during this
pathetic scene and recital, which
moved the. compassion of every lis
tener, Houle seemed to say it as sort
OF matter OF course and without a
break in his voice or sign of tear.
Some testimony was INTRODUCED as
to the mental condition of the prisoner
which tended to snow that while the
man is not considered an imbecile, but
yet he is undoubtedly to some extent
mentally incapable. IA. ,ts5 sS5
At the close of the term of court,
Judge sauter sentenced Houle to i'm
lprisonment in the penitentiary for life.
Valley City Patriot: A large NUM-
ber Of Valley Cityans attended the