Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1902-03-22
SANTA FE N. M, SATURDAY MARCH 22 1902
THE RAMOS MARTINEZ
MURDER CASE
An Interesting and Sensational Chain Of Cir
cumstantiaI Evidence Which Had Been
Linked Together by the prosecu-
tion in the Case.
THE DEFENSE HOWEVER SHOWED THAT
THE WOMAN HAD NOT BEEN MURDERED

The case of the Territory against
Jose Rafael Octaviano Martinez, who
was charged with the murder of his
wife at La Pueblo on the 7th of June
last was submitted to the jury at q
few minutes after 9 o'clock last night
and at 9:25 p. m. it returned verdict
of not guilty.
The story presented to the jury by
the prosecution as well as that by the
defense was very interesting, as there
was involved peculiar a'3tfstitior
which seemed to form the basis of the
testimony of the principal witness fol
the territory. Medical evidence was
offered on both sides which added a
feature of considerable interest.
The history of the case as developed
by the territory was substantially that
on the Sd of June, 1901, the deceased
was brought to her husbands house
very sick, was put to bed and remained
there until her death four days later.
1t seems that during her confinement
to bed no one visited the house. On
the 9Th of June her husband discovered
large sore on her back, which had an
infested center. around which for a
space four or five inches in diameter
there was a hard blackened surface.
Discovering this the defendant hurried
to the justice of the peace, Juan N.
Lujan, who practices medicine without
a license according to the testimony,
and according to the defendants story
asked him to come and treat his wife,
but according to Mr.. Lujans story,
asked him to send two men to exam
Inc the wounds upon his wife for fear
| that he might be accused Of her death
| in case she should die. Lujan refused
| to treat the sick woman because he
was out Of medicine, and refused to
send persons to inspect the body of
Ramos Martinez because his authority
did not begin until after death. 1t
seems also that on the 9Th of June, the
defendant refused to permit relative
| of the deceased, Damasio Espinosa, to
view the body. These two points, ac-
cording to the prosecution, were links
in the chain by which it was sought to
establish the defendants guilt. Jose
de los Angelas Martin testified that a
| few days after the feast at Taos pueb
| 10 he and the defendant were travelling
lhomeward, and when in the nighbor-
hood of Cineguilla. the defendant told
him that he mad contemplated the mur-
der Of his wife, but nad restrained his
hand out of pity for his young chill
dren, but would wait until they grew
little. In this connection the witness
said that the defendant claimed to
know how to tell when his wife had
sinned against him because friend of
his had made him present of magic
water BY day or by night he could
learn by consulting this water just
when and how often his wife had been
untrue to him, for he could hold the
bottle in his hand and if the wife were
not in sin the water would be quiet,
but If she had committed or was COM
hitting a carnal wrong against her
husband, then the water would make
bubbles, one bubble for one sin, two
bubbles for two sins, and so on. This
in effect was the witness testimony
Damaio Espinosa testified that on the
morning of June 2. 1901, the defendant
told him that he had no use for his
wife except to lay hands upon her ev
en- though he went to Jail for it, Other
evidence against the defendant was to
the effect that he and his wife had not
L. bot lat
turn from Durango on the night Of the
18th of June, and finding his wife alb
sent from his house he made no effort
to find her, and on learning that she
was sick abed at neighbor's house,
he refused to go for her or visit her.
The defendant denied the more impor-
tant features of the evidence against
him, and otherwise his defense was
entirely circumstantial, showing that
his wife had been an epileptic for some
time that in her attacks she would
become temporarily insane, tear her
Clothes run away, suffer no restraint;
that towards the last Of May, 1901, she
was seen upon the road riding horse
at topmost speed astride of it like a
man, with an insane blaze in her eyes,
the bride reins loose upon the neck of
the steed, and her hands hanging free;
that on the night of June she waded
Santa Cruz river which was foot deep
at it's lowest flow with two children,
and came to the house of Benito
Maestas, drenched to the waist, utter
ing only the word "miseri cordia," that
she remained at that house for three
days, having spoken only that one
word, and was carried from IL in a
stupor to her husbands house, where
according to the testimony of the pros
ecution she was roughly received by
her husband and roughly dragged into
the house. The defense, by medical
the wound upon the back had been
there for probably month ana was
caused at time when her husband
was at work in Durango; that even II
the wound had been inflicted by the
husband it was not fatal unless blood
poisoning set in; that if blood poison
ing did set in it was secondary and
not primary cause of DEATH so that
death, If it resulted from the wound
in any way, it did so indirectly, and
thus the taking off of the wife was on
ly indirectly due to the hurt, and could
have been avoided by treatment. 1t
was also suggested on the part Of the
defendant that the wound on the back
might have been caused by microbe in
lection.
Hon. E. c. Abbott, district attorney,