The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-04-28
STORY OF GYPSY WOMAN
AFFIDAVIT FILED CHARGING A
sTEPMOTHER WITH MURDER.
Baby Said to Have Been Killed and
Buried i'm a Grape Basket
mt Hammond's Grove.

Yesterday morning a Gypsy woman, Civ
ing her name as Mary Mitchell. was in the
courthouse looking for an attorney. She
was talking to one Of the j~anitors. who di-
rected her 10 Attorney /. r. Reinhold. who
just then entered the building. Reinhold
took the woman over to his Office, and there
she filed afidavits against her father. Jona-
than Stevens, or S~tafonowitz. as the foreign
name is given. for assault and battery
and provoke. her brother Gustav for sure
~ Of the peace and provoke. and her
stepmother. Estella Stevens, for pro-
woke. The woman charged that the
alleged offenses were done her personally.
and recited a history of their family trOu-
BILE.
The woman said she ran away and mar
ried Mitchell. In Chicago, several years
ago. she said she fell in love with a man,
but her father did not like him.. She said
her father asked the man to raise $500 to
buy her, and when he did get the money
and all arrangements were made for the
her father backed down and
would not let her go. She said he had a
husband picked out for her who offered to
give him 500. but rather than marry him
she ran away with Mitchell to Denver,
Col, and married him. The attorney was
told that her parents followed her to the
West and caused her arrest. She says she
gave her parents $500 peace money and
that the suit cost her stepmother 81, 400.
From Denver, she says, her parents fol-
lowed her to different parts OF the coun-
try and continually caused trouble.
The family is now with a amp Of about
twenty Gypsies in Hammond's grove,
northeast Of the city. The family has had
considerable trouble there. according TO
the story Of the woman. and it has figured
in the courts of Justice Cook, OF washing
ton township; Justice White. OF Broad Rip
pie. and Justice LOckman, of this city. She
said a constable from the latter court came
10 the camp a few nights ago after her
husband. against whom an affidavit mad
been filed. charging him with surety of the
peace and assault and battery. She said
the constable entered her tent and, taking
a revolver out OF his pocket, demanded TO
know where her husband was. She said
she told him he had gone TO Chicago, where
he went several days ago.
After she had recited this family history
she nervously asked if it. was against the
law i'm this country to Kill babies. Rein
hold then became interested. and told her
IL was. She then said she had better not
tell what she intended to, for fear that her
people would injure or kill her. Reinhold
told her il was "A crime 10 withhold mfor-
nation about a baby being killed, if one
lot Dtt hllCus iii that III JUN bt
arrested for il. She then said that her
sister-in-law. about four weeks ago, gave
birth TO a child. She and her stepmOther
attended the woman and baby. While she
was waiting upon her mother she said her
stepmother took the baby on her lap and.
raising her fist. crushed the side OF the
baby's head. She said the baby was then
buried In a grape basket in one corner Of
the grove.
When Reinhold heard this story he asked
the woman TO remain i'm his Office while he
Nganf 70 EnnGnlf with the nQfaRfiVaE and
police. The woman told the same story
I'm the presence of the detectives and then
signed an affidavit charging the stepmother
with murder. The affidavit was read over
TO the woman before she signed it. and
she was asked if she was positive she
knew what She was doing The woman
said she was, and attached her signature.
The affidavit was then placed in the hands
% Coroner Brayton, who. with Detectives
ASch, Wallace and Gerber, went TO the
camp In the afternoon 10 make an investl-
cation.