The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-11-19
HORRIBLE
DEATH BY
LIVE WIRE
Oklahoma City Man Electro
cuted in Wife's Sight.
CORONER FINDS VERDICT
And Engineer of Electric Plant
Is Arrested.
CORONER FINDS VERDICT

Oklahoma City, Nov. 1s.-Last night the
ccroners jury brought in a verdict in the
case resulting from tragedy in this city
Sunday morning. The verdict Involves
the city electrical engineer for criminal
negligence.
The Oldahoman's account of it is as fol-
lows:
Standing within few feet and seeing
Ter husband burned TO death by a live
tlectric wire was the awful experience of
Mrs George Luckert. about o'clock
Sunday morning. The horror-stricken
woman stood for a moment transhxed by
the terrible spectacle and then rushed
forward to her husbands s aid, but was
prevented from a similar fate by neigh
boring man, who intsrposed and warned
her OF the danger, and her little child was
also stopped from approac ching the with
ing. contorted form Of the electrocuted
father.
The terrible occurrence took place on
the sidewalk in frort of the Luckert res
idence, at go West Chiekashaw street.
Mr. Luckert went out of the house, it is
said, to ascertain the cause Of certain
noises he heard, and saw a few feet west
OF his place, a pony lying where it had
been killed by the wires few moments
before. AS he walked along his foot be-
came entangled in a coil of wire and he
plunged forward upon h's face.
Several persons saw the man after he
had entered the death trap and, while
agonized by witnessing his body wTithing
and blazing from the powerful fiery cur
rent, was powerIess to extend a helping
hand or to shut off the electrical current,
and thus the body lay literally roasting
for fully an hour and thirty minutes.
When the body was taken to the morgue
and viewed by the coroners jury it was
q frightful spectacle to look upon. Wher-
ever it had touched the ground the flesh
was incinerated and great gaps in the
limbs and feet and the flesh along the
left side of the body and face presented
a charred and blackened surface. In sew
eral places on the limbs the wire had
burned through the flesh 70 the bones.
Mr. Luckert and his brother Carl were
the local agents for the Goetz Brewing
company OF St. Joseph. Mo, and the
SChlitz Brewing company of Milwaukee,
Wis He leaves a wife and four children.
The remains were yesterday shipped to
Sabetha. Kan. for interment.
Coroner Street summoned a jury which
assembled at the morgue at . o'clock
Sunday afternoon. T. II. McMechan ap-
peared for the family OF the deceased,
while c. B. Ames represented the Okla
homa City Gas and Electric company.
County Attorney Taylor conducted the
examination, as it was indnated that
Criminal proceedings would probably fol-
low the findings Of the coroners jury.
The jury summoned by Coroner Street
was composed of \. c. Grain. +. W.
Jones, Il. c. Emery, f. S. Starbrook, J.
N Reading and J. J. Brady.
The inquest was held in the undertaking
roons Of street & Reed after the jury
had reviewed the remains in the morgue.
There were several witnesses examined.
but c. A. Stringer and Guy Har6ins gave
all the necessary evidence.
The first witness examined was c. 4.
Stringer. who is connected with the
Alton-Dawson Mercantile company, and
stated that for about two weeks he has
resided in a house next TO the Luckert
r. sidence on Chickasaw street, but who
neither known nor seen Luckert until
Sunday morning. Mr.. stringer testified:
Il saw Mr.. Luckert between and 7
o'clock this morninf. after daylight He
vas coming out of his house and was
attfred only with an urdershirt. trousers
got into the wires. 1t was an electric