The Saint Paul globe., 1904-12-28
JURY SAYS CANNON
KILLED PERCY YOUNG
Coroner's Inquest Is Held and
Prisoner Is Arraigned in
Police Court


Percy A. Young Sunday night, will
probably have to stand trial on a.
charge of murder in the second de-
gree. He was arraigned in police
court yesterday morning and his case
was continued until today pending the
inquest which was held at the county
morgue.
The jury, after ten minutes delibera-
tion, returned the following verdict:
Percy Young came to his death
about 10 o'clock in the evening, Dee.
%, at 2491s East Seventh street, st.
Paul, Minn., and the cause Of his death
was a gun shot wound from pistol
held in the hand of Harry Cannon
After viewing the body of Young at
Nagle's undertaking rooms, the jury,
which was made up of Charles #.
Schneider, F. M. Cady, P. Sehons, E.
Campbell, A. ]. .Kahlert and C. E.
Sizus, listened to the stories of six
Witnesses, who were examined by
County Attorney Kane.
Two of the men who were in the
room at the time Young was killed,
w. A. Countrynan and Joseph Fine
berg, told different stories Of the in
cident leading up to the shooting.
Both Men on Their Feet
Countryman testified that the first
shot was not fired until both men were
on their feet and struggling together,
while Fineberg positively asserted that
Young was sitting at the table when
Cannon reached into the drawer of a
dresser and pulling out the revolver,
fired at Young.
hot 70
trouble arose through Young's putting
cigarette ashes on the clean cloth
spread on the dresser while Ffneberg
claimed that it was George Shannon
who put the ashes on the cloth and
that when Cannon objected Young took
a hand. Both witnesses agreed that the
men were struggling together at the
time the fatal shot was fired and that
Shannon was asleep on the couch at
the time of the shooting.
w. A. Countrynan, an egg tester en-
ployed by Swift & Co., was the first
witness to take the stand. He said
that he had known Young for over
two years and had roomed with him
until July 30 of this year and that he
had known Cannon for some time. On
the day of the shooting Young came TO
his room in the morning after being
out all night and accompanied by
Young he had visited Cannon in the
afternoon and had dinner at Cannon's
rooms. Young left later in the after
noon and did not again appear at Can
mons room until about s o'clock in the
evening, when he brought George
Shannon with him and that both men
were under the influence of liquor. He
said that Young, Cannon, Fineberg and
himself were playing poker when the
trouble started. That Young and Can
non quarreled over Young depositing
ashes on the cloth covering the dresser
and that after some hot words Young
started towards Cannon, who pulled
revolver from a drawer in the dress
er and fired one shot downwards
just as Young reached him. He,
Countryman, rushed to the men and
endeavored to take the gun away from
Cannon, but just as he grasped Cam
mons arm the pistol was discharged a
second time with the nluZzle pressed
against YOungs body. He said Young
sank to the floor and was carried to
the bed where after few gasps he
died, and that Cannon said:
"Perey Is Dead Shot Him"
There is no use sending for a doc
tor, Percy is dead and l shot him.
wish En- had been here, for if she had
this would not have happened"
When asked who EN- was, Coun-
tryman said she was the woman who
lived with Cannon. After a rigid ex-
animation by Mr.. Kane the witness
admitted that Young had nothing but
his hands to defend himself with when
Cannon reached for the revolver and
that the reason he grappled with the
latter might have been to disarm him.
Also that the first shot might have
been DETECTED towards the floor by
Young forcing Cannon's hand down
wards.
Countryman also testified that the
revolver was fully loaded at the time
and that after the shooting he emptied
the cartridges on the dresser and
placed the pistol beside them. When
the police arrived only the revolver and
one empty shell could be found
DR.. I. J.. Maloney, deputy coroner,
testified that at the autopsy held at the
morgue Monday afternoon a bullet hole
was discovered in the dead mans
chest at the junction of the fifth and
sixth ribs. The flesh was badly con-
fused and burned around the wound,
which he believed to have resulted
from powder burns The bullet,
thirty y-eight-caliber, had penetrated
the lower part of the heart and the left
lung and had finally lodged in the
muscles of the left shoulder. The bull
let was shown to the jury.
Joseph Fineberg, a baker, living at
PA East Fourteenth street was the
third witness. Fineberg was positive
that Cannon fired the first shot while
Young was seated at the table and
swore that the bullet missed Young,
hit the bed detected and struck him,
tearing his trousers and lodging in his
shoe. He was also sure that the trou-
bic arose from Shannon placing cigar
cite ashes on the dresser, and although
closely questioned stuck to his story.
Shannon Tells Story
George E. Shannon, shipping clerk
employed by Swift & Co., was called
next. Shannon claimed to know very
little of the matter, stating that he was
in drunken stupor and was sound
asleep until the shots were fired. He
admitted throwing a match on the
dresser a few minutes before the hom-
icide, and said that Cannon objected
but that he was so sleepy he paid no
attention to anything that was go
ing on.
On being further questioned by the
county attorney Shannon made the fol-
lowing statement:
when the shots were fired / awoke
and the first thing 1 saw was Young
sinking to the floor, saying he was
shot. Countryman picked him up and
carried him to the bed. where ne died
in few minutes. / did not notice
Cannon until Percy was dead, and then
he was standing looking at u.s.
Patrolman D. H. Burke testified that
he was notified of the shooting by c. E.