The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1904-07-19
SAVED FROM GALLONS
Upton BROTHERS WILL NOT Be
HANGED IN SELMA.


John Upton and Tom Upton, negro
brothers. who have been in the Dallas
County jail in Selma several months
awaiting death by hanging, were saved
nor Cunningham who committed their
death sentence to life imprisonment
The Upton brothers were to have
been banged in the jai! yard In Selma
prepared for the execution. A tele-
gram sent to the sheriff yesterday at
ternoon by Governor Cunningham I'M
doubleday made the negroes very hap
Ply.
These negro boys were convicted Of
shooting and killing Fred Robbins, a
third negro in East Selma last winter.
1t was shown to the Governor by law
yers for the negroes and leading cfti-
Zens of Dallas County, that there was
reasonable ground for believing that
the Tiptons were not guilty of killing
Robbins.
In committing the sentence Governor
Cunningham wrote as follows on the
application for clemency:
These applicants for executive Glenn
ency were convicted of murder In the
first degree and sentenced to death.
They petition that said sentence be
| committed to life imprisonment in the
penitentiary. The deceased died sew
eral days after he was shot, from pneu-
monia which. according to the testi-
mony. was due to the gun-shot wound.
Expert testimony is that he was shot
with IL ol UT 90 CdllOTe plStol, Wu1lo inc
pistol of one of the defendants was q
Al calibre.
There is a difference In the testi-
mony of the principal witness on some
and final examination. Three credible
white witnesses testified that a person
| OF ordinary oversight could not distin-
guish another person. under the CTR
cumstances, at the time and places de-
scribed by the eyewitness. The tes-
timony all shows that these defendants
were present and mingled with the
crowd at a drug store Immediately af-
was the chief State witness, who was
himself wounded. and who did not at
that time charge the DEFENDANTS with
the offense. There is other testimony
that the defendants entered a bar room
which seems to be a partitioned of
| portion of the drug store. about the
time OF or very soon after the shooting,
while there Is other testimony to the
effect that one of the defendants was In
| the bar room at the time OF the shoot
Ing. Another negro had IL calibre
warm. 1t also appears from the testi-
mony that there was great deal Of
shooting OF guns, pistols and fire.
crackers about on the street at that
time.
The State also established as to one
OF the defendants motive and a
! threat. There is also an affidavit. dated
June 2. 1904, to the effect that the am
|
ceased and another negro were only a
short distance behind him; that a crowd
was just In front and that this crowd
stepped In between the cars that were
standing on the track and that in that
crowd he recognized three persons and
that he left behind him at the drug
| store the defendants who were on the
sidewalk and they were not In said
crowd: that just as he crossed the
track. the shooting took place and came
from just where he had seen this crowd
go in.
The Board of Pardons says:
There is. in the opinion of the
Board. doubt as to the guilt of these
two men,. The conviction was secured
largely on evidence which we regard as
unreliable. A large number of the best
citizens of Dallas County petition that
the sentence be committed to life i'm
prisonment in the penitentiary and we
recommend that their prayer be gru,t-
ed
The preponderance OF evidence is
that these defendants are guilty and
the probability of their guilt rs too
great to Justify a pardon but the pos
sibility of their innocence Is too great
to warrant their execution.
Therefore. 1t Is ordered that the
sentence of death be committed to life
imprisonment in the penitentiary.