The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-10-18
TO TRY WIFE SLAYER
LOUIS NJ. ASHBY WILL INTERPOSE
INSANITY PLEA.
STATE SAYS IT'S A SHAM.
MAN KNEW WHAT HE WAS DOING
AND HAD A MOTIVE.

Prisoner Killed His Wife, Matte j
Ashby, in a CoId-BIooded Manner
Held Her Fast 10 n Trunk While
He Emptied His Revolver Into
Her-Nrs. e. G.. Sims and Her Son
witnessed the Crime, and Are I'M
portant witnesses for the state.
Insanity Plea May Mean That Two
story of the Crime RetOld Brieny'
The trial of Louis NJ. Ashby, the wife
murderer, will be called in the superior
Court to-day. Twiggs & Oliver Will APP
near for the prisoner, and Solicitor
General Osborne will represent the
prosecution.
The defense will interpose a plea OF
insanity. Whether the claim will De
made that Ashby was insane when he
so brutally murdered his wife, or
whether it will be contended that he
is insane now, and has been for sew
eral years is not known. In the event
that a claim of chronic dementia is
made a special plea would have to be
filed and a separate jury would inves-
tigate the sanity of the prisoner. In the
event that he should be adjudged a
lunatic he would be sent to the State
Sanitarium at Milledgeville. Should the
fury agree that the prisoner is of
sound mind and discretion he would be
placed on trial for murder before an
other penal
In the event that the defense inter-
poses a plea of temporary insanity the
trial will proceed in the usual manner
and the contention will act as bona
fde defense. Witnesses were sum-
moned by the defense yesterday, by
whom it is expected to prove that
Ashby has been mentally unsound for
several years. Because of the fact that
subpoenas were sent out for these wit
nesses, some of whom worked with
Ashby. il is believed that the special
plea of chronic dementia will be inter
posed. Counsel for the prisoner will
probably call attention to the fact that
the prisoner attempted to commit sui
eide some time since by dashing him
self headlong against an iron arm II
the jail. Since that time the prisoner
has been under a strong guard, but has
made no other attempts at persona
violence. The defense will endeavoI
TO show that Ashby has made a prac'
tice of using some brand of dope and
that he was a heavy drinker.
The prisoner killed his wife, Matte
]. Ashby, on Sept. 20, at the home OF
Mrs. Z. G. Sims at No. S14 Jones
street, west. The crime, as pictured
by the eye witnesses, was a cowardly
and brutal one. 1t was witnessed
by Mrs. Sims and her son William
who is now held in Jail as a wit
ness. Ashby's 2-year-old baby CIR
was within a foot of him when he be
gan firing. Ashby held his wife fas
to a trunk, upon which she was sit
ting, and emptied his revolver into hel
body. He then cooly and calmly re-
loaded the weapon and fired three 9th
err shots into the woman. He made
his escape by jumping over the bach
fence and was arrested on a Seaboarc
Air Line train a day or two later.
Ashby was not living with his wife
when the homicide occurred and the
woman had begun an action in di-
vorce. She charged cruel treatment
and when Ashby called at the Sims
house on the morning of the tragedy
she refused to agree to a reconciliation
or to have the divorce petition dis
missed. Ashby had quite an argu.
ment with his wife on this subject ano
shot her to death when she was pow
erless, and could offer no show of re-
sistance. He held her tightly witt
one hand and pulled the trigger of the
deadly weapon with the other. The
state will contend and expects to show
that the crime was committed with
out the slightest provocation, and thai
Ashby was responsible for his acts
and knew full well what he was doing
when he used the revolver 1t is under
stood that the prosecution will endeav'
or to show an unmistakable motive fol
the killing, but just what 1t was has
not been given out
Mrs. Sims and her son were the only
eye witnesses to the killing, and they
tell practically the same story. TIT
prosecution, however. has caused oth
ers to be subpoenaed with a view y
fighting the insanity plea, which Il
looked upon as a subterfuge by TIL
state. One of these witnesses resided
near Ashby several years ago, anC
states that at that time the man treat
ed his wife in a cruel and heartles'
manner, and too, treated his mother II
any but a proper way. The case prom
Uses to be hard fought one. The pris
oner may have a special guard nea
him while on trial, as a matter Of pre-
caution.