The Savannah morning news., 1901-12-13
THREE FOUND GUILTY
CRIMINALS CONVICTED AND SEN
FENCED IN SUPERIOR COURT.
FOUR YEARS IN THE PEN.
THAT WAS THE PUNISHMENT MET
ED OUT TO CONVICTED BURGLAR.

Innocence, Is Found GuiIty-Israei
Small, One-armed Negro COnsta-
BILE, Sentenced to Serve Two Years
ia the Penitentiary-Jury Reduced
Grade of His Offense from Assault
With Intent to Murder to shoot
ing Not in His own Defense-Joe
Lane, Thief of Parts, Gets
Twelve Months for Lifting Loco
motive Brasses.
There were three criminal trials in
the Superior Court yesterday, three
convictions and three sentences, the
last ranging in duration from twelve
months on the county changing to
four years in the penitentiary. The
longest sentence was imposed upon
Charles Murray, whom a jury found
guilty of burglary.
The indictment on which Murray
was arraigned ard tried charged that
on Aug. II he had broken and entered
the dwelling house of John w. Cheny.
with intent to steal. AS a matter of
fact the man who committed the
burglary lifted the greater portion of
the wardrobe of the prosecuting wit
ness and no part of it has ever been
recovered
The evidence introduced OIL behalf
of the state permitted no doubt to
be entertained of the guilt of the
accused and it required a compare
lively short time for the jury to reach
and return a verdict of guilty. One
witness swore positively she had seen
the defendant enter Cheney's house
on the day the burglary was COM
mitted.
The prisoner seemed to have en-
joyed in the past a reasonably good
reputation and for this reason doubt
less Judge Seabrook gave him only
four years in the penitentiary. AS a
usual thing five years is the mini
mum penalty imposed when a jury
returns a verdict Of guilty of bur-
glary, without recommending tie de-
PENDANT to the mercy of the court.
Israel Small, a one-armed negro con-
stable, was sentenced to serve two
years in the penitentiary. He was
tried for assault with sntent to murder
Daniel Afford, found guilty by the jury
of shooting not in his own defense and
sentenced.
walked into a skin game in which
Afford and some other negroes were
engaged and that a quarrel ensued be-
tween the men as to a debt Small
claimed was due him. The amount in
dispute was 20 cents. Afford testified
that Small drew one revolver and it
was taken away from him, and that
he then drew a second weapon and shot
the witness in the back.
1af IL. oyos- i i
in self-defense and had fired only after
he had been attacked and badly beaten
by Afford and his friends. The evil
dence, direct and circumstantial
scarcely bore out this statement and
the only surprise occasioned by the
verdict was that it reduced the grade
of the offense from assault with intent
to murder to shooting not in his own
defense.
Something of this Judge Seabrook
expressed when he imposed sentence
upon the defendant. Small has been
a constable for a number of years,
and was well known to Judge Seabrook
when he was practicing law at the Sa-
vannah bar.
Israel said the court, II regret that
it becomes my duty to sentence you. You
are boy 1 have known for long
time and of whom l have always
thought a good deal. For some rea-
son, possibly because you have been
drinking too much, you seem to have
drifted into evil ways and you have
done very wrong. You ought to thank
your Maker that the man you shot did
not die; If he had you would now pos
sibly be listening to the imposition of
the death sentence. Without reflect
ing upon the jury in any way, who of
course know as much about these mat
tiers as 1 do, it seems to me that the
evidence adduced on this stand made
out a clear case of assault with in
tent to murder. Possibly it is better
for you that you be allowed oppor-
tunity, away from your present evil
associates, to amend the error of your
ways, and am going to give you two
years"
The formal sentence of the law was
then imposed. Israel. however, did
not seem to receive the offered oppor-
tunity for repentance and amendment
in the spirit of gratitude Judge Sea-
brook evidently thought it's Just due.
The third case tried was that If
Joe Lane, indicted for larceny from
the house. The indictment charged that
Joe had entered the round house of the
Plant System and lifted locomotive
brasses valued at $40, but the goods
recovered from the defendant were
worm less than 500, and the Jury so
found. This reduced the grade of the
offense from felony to misdemean-
or.
Lane stoutly protested his innocence,
but one circumstance that told strong
ly against him was that on the dav
of the theft he was seen strolling
about in the vicinity of the round
house, arrayed in working overalls and
carrying a bunch of waste in his hand.
Four or five times he was chased off
the premises and four or five times he
returned, each time protesting he was
looking for work. The jury found II
impossible to reconcile these suspicious
circumstances with any possible theory
involving the innocence of the accused
Judge Seabrook sentenced the. de-
PENDANT to pay fine of $3.50 and costs
or serve twelve months on the county
changing. The size of the fine is
somewhat unusual, 500 and costs he
ing the regulation alternative in lar
ceny cases for twelve months on the
gang. Some comment was made to
Judge Seabrook on this fact.
We'll" he sad, II sentenced an
other brass thief not long ago and
heard afterwards that some of the
tunkdealers I'm town had paid his fine
II that is the fact and the practice /
want to punish them. at the same time
/ do the actual thief"