The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-10-24
VICIOUS JURYMEH.
Startling Acquittal In the
Shapiro Abduction
Case.
SOME JURY ROOM SECRETS
Scraps of Paper Which Indi-
cate Disgracefu1 Miscon-
duct-Trouble Ahead.

The verdict of not guilty returned by a
jury in the Court of General Sessions yes
terday afternoon in the case Of Maud
Thompson, the woman charged with abb
Quoting for immoral purposes IA year old
Mary. Shapiro of Jerse City, created
considerable surprise among the specta-
tors in the court room, and Indignation
on the part of Judge Blair and Prosecutor
Erwin All the evidence produced by the
State seemed to indicate that verdict Of
guilty would speedily be returned, and
when Foreman John Ryan announced
that the jury's decision was that the de-
fendant was innocent murmur Of sur
prise was heard throughout the court
room Prosecutor Erwin arose and ad-
dressing the Court declared
This is an outrage on justice"
He then moved for the discharge of the
twelve Jurors who had returned the YER
dict for the balance of the term.
Judge Blair's indignation was plainly
manifested as he ordered the Jurors TO
their seats, and the Prosecutor requested
that the defendant be held until he could
further investigate the case and see il
another charge could not be made against
her so that she would not escape at least
part of the penalty for her crime.
The jurors who returned the surprising
verdict were:-John Ryan. John Davis.
Paul Decker, Gustav Metzinger, Patrick
LAWN, John Pforr, Charles E. Barnes,
James Brady, George washburn, Phillip
Sherry Adam Link and Cornelius Conso-
dine.
1t is claimed that during the three hours
spent in the jury room but little time was
devoted to considering the evidence, and
after the jurors had returned to the court
room numerous slips of paper on which
We're written improper poetry and i'm
moral references to the Court and Prose
cutor were found on the table in the jury
room. These were handed TO the Court
and may form the basis of some startling
developments in the case.
The particulars of the story of the
abduction are still fresh in the public
mind. The Thompson woman was known
to the police of Jersey City. She was
said to be the wife of a well known
| burglar.
Mary Shapiro. when located in a road
house at Willimantic. Conn. said that
Maud Thompson had Induced her to leave
her home, at No. S42 First street, Jersey
City, on July Is, under the promise of
taking her to coney Island. Instead the
1 WOhAdlE lOuA lteT 10 w NllifllditiC, " mere 1OI
four days she was compelled to entertain
men brought to the road house, where
| she was subsequently found.
The story told by the young girl with
all it's disgusting details was connected
and was mistaken by the cross-examina-
! ton of Lawyer Charles C. Kelly, who ap-
| peared for the defendant. During the re-
cital of her wrongs the complaining wit
. | hao buc Nd fof fad IN, fa
witness stand The cross examination by
the defendants counsel showed that the
Shapiro girl was inclined to be wild and
| unruly.
Louis Hardy testified that Maud Thomp-
son had told him of her intention CT pro-
curing girls for the house of ill-fame at
Willimantic. and hearing of Mary
Shapio's disappearance he had informed
the police of his belief that she had been
enticed away by the Thompson woman.
His story was not shaken on cross ex-
animation.
Mary Mcguire. a twelve-year-old girl.
who lives near the Shapiro girls home,
testified that the defendant had tried to
coax her to leave home.
Detective Prescott told Of the finding
of the girl and the arrest of Maud
Thompson.
No defence was offered Lawyer Kelly,
at the conclusion of the States case,
began his summing up. He argued that
the failure of the defendant to take the
stand in her own behalf should not mill
tate against her and denied that the evi-
dence showed that the crime of abduc-
ton had been committed. He said the
girl had gone willingly to New York and
from there had taken the train to Wilt
mantle.