The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1905-01-26
GETS A LIFE SENTENCE
The jury in the Chas. WOOdard Case
Returns a Verdict of Guilty andFixes
Punishment at Life Imprisonment.

Contrary to expections the jury in
the Charles Woodland case agreed on a
verdict, and at quarter past one
o'clock Friday afternoon returned into
court with verdict of guilty of murder
in the first degree and fixed his punish
ment at Imprisonment in the penitenti-
ary for life, after being out for fifteen
and half hours.
At the time The REPoRTER went to
press last Wednesday afternoon Attor-
ney Y. R..McGinnis was in the midst of
his argument for the defense, having
commenced talking at a few minutes
before o'clock. He had not finished
at 6 o'clock and Judge Evans ordered a
night session at which MIR. McGinnis
resumed his argument and talked for an
hour and quarter making a total of
five and quarter hours which he used
in presenting the case to the jury. He
made masterful and powerful argu-
ment carefully examining the evidence
and presenting the claims of the de-
fense in a skillful manner. His argu-
ment was listened to with marked at
tention by both the jury and the large
audience which filled the court room.
He is one of the best speakers in the
state and seemed to put his whole soul
into this case. At the conclusion of his
address. court adjourned until Thursday
morning at o'clock.
The crowd in attendance when court
opened Thursday morning was still
large enough to fill the court room al
though many Of the witnesses in the
case had returned home. Attorney G.
w. Hoffman made the closing argument
for the defense, commencing when
court opened in the morhingand finished
about 3 O'Clock that afternoon. Mr..
Hoffman went oyer the entire case, step
by step, examining the testimony Of
each witness and endeavored to explain
the testimony which appeared to be
against his client, and insisted that
there was absolutely no reliable evil
dence against his client, in fact no evil
dence whatever on which the jury
would be justified in finding him guilty
of the crime charged. He refuted the
statements made by County Attorney
Kelley in the opening argument for the
state, and claimed that much Of the tes-
timony which the state had introduced
in this case was too tlimsy on which to
convict any man. He said he was salts
fed in his own mind that Charles Wood
ard never poisoned his wife, and if she
died from strychnine poison she either
took it herself for the purpose of kill
ing herself or else by accident. When
he finished it was o'clock.
He was followed by George W. Baker,
who made the closing argument for the
state. 1t had been expected that Mr..
Baker would make the effort of his life
in this case, and long before he COM
menced to speak it was impossible for
any more people to get inside the court
room, it being packed to suIfocation and
many were unable to get inside the
do )r. Mr.. Baker is a ready speaker
and the large audience which was pres
ent seemed to spurn him to supreme
effort and he made one of the most earn
est and powerful pleas, asking the jury
to find the defendant guilty, ever heard
in the court room of Decatur county.
Mr.. Baker talked RAPIDLY and examined
inch by inch the chain of ci,cumstantial
testimony which the state had woven
about the defendant, and said that if
there ever had been case of cold
blooded, premeditated murder this was
one. That the defendant had tired of
his wife, had insured her life and then
made way with her by means of deadly
poison. He closed his address with a
dramatic plea that the jury do the duty
which they had sworn to perform and
return verdictSof guilty as charged in
the Indictment and which had been
proven beyond the shadow of doubt
by the testimony of the witnesses on
behalf of the state. Mr.. Baker closed
at 8 O'Clock Thursday night, having
talked four and half hours.
The instructions to the jury were
then read by Judge Evans, and, as they
are Of much interest we publish them in
full on page 8 Of this issue. Judge
Evans finished the charge to the jury at
$3.50 o'clock and the case was left in the
hands Of the jury, the court room being
cleared by order of Judge Evans as II
was decided that the court room would
be the best place for the jury to spend
the night.
When the jury retired it was common
talk that they would never agree on ;
verdict and that it would be hung
jury, and this opinion was strengthens
when Friday morning came and the jur,