The Lafayette advertiser. [volume] (Vermilionville [i.e. Lafayette], La.) 1865-19??, 1905-04-05
TRA|NMEN ACQUITTED
ON CHARGE OF THE MURDER OF
A. q. 0ATLlN.
ON Preliminary EXAMINATION
Judge nll0ef Decides Evidence Was
insufficient to Hold s. p. Train.
mon and They Were Released.

Lake Charles Press, April /.
At 2:45 O'Clock this afternoon Con.
ductor Baldwin and brakemen Haney
and Harris, of the extra freight train
No. ST.. from which it is alleged that
A. 6. Gatlin was shot and killed,
walked out of the district court room
free men, after being in Jail here since
March ~, the day after the killing
occurred. Engineer John Carroll and
Fireman Frank Green, who were held
as material witnesses, were also re-
leased.
In rendering his decision Judge
Miller said:
"After carefully listening to all the
evidence in this case it is the opinion
of the court that the evidence is in
sufficient to warrant holding the &C.
cused and they are therefore ordered
released"
The preliminary examination of
Conductor ]. s. Baldwin, Brakeman
Mike Haney and Brakeman E. G.
Harris, train crew of extra freight
No. ST., from which the shot is sup
posed to have been fired which killed
a: G. Gatlin on the afternoon of
March ., was begun before His
Honor District Judge E. D. Miller
this morning 1t . o'clock.
District Attorney Moss is represent
ing the State and Mitchell & Young
are representing the defendants.
The first witness called by the State
was Ed Griffin, the young Englishman,
who was coming from Sulphur to
Lake Charles with Gatlin when the
latter was killed. Griffin told the
story of the shooting and said that he
and Gatlin had boarded the freight
train to come to Lake Charles at
Sulphur. He said that when the
train pulled in ON the siding at Lock-
Moore's switch, just. west of section
house 30 he was ordered OF the train
and jumped OF on the north side of
the track while Gatlin got of a few
car lengths back en- the south side.
He said he walked back toward the
caboose and when ct q point just
opposite Gstlin two shots rang nj
and he saw Gatip fall. He further
told how Gatlin was wounded and
said he remained with him at the
section house until he died some hours
later and that he never regained
consciousness. He was cross ex-
smined by Attorney Mitchell on
minor points Of his testimony. He
stated that . strange man had been on
the ~ with him when he was ordered
OF and that he never saw him after he
got on the train.
Coroner W. l. Fisher was next
called and described the nature of the
wound which killed Gatlin.
Mrs. Kate Dearm0n and her hus-
band, NJ. A. Dearmon, testified that
they were respectively keeper of the
section house and foreman of section
IS and described tho scene of the
shooting, which neither of them saw.
Their testimony was unimportant,
except in 20 far ~ concerned the
relative distance of the section house
from the point where the shot was
alleged to have been fired from.
John Carroll, engineer of the
freight train, and Frank Green, the
fireman, testified % to the time they
passed the point where the shooting
occurred, both Stating that they heard
no shots. The principal thing about
their testimony was that It clearly
established the. fact that brakeman
Haney was on the forward end of the
train and could mot have fired the
shot which killed 0stlin without them
een him do so.
The state then attempted to put
Haney on the stand, but Attorney
Mitchell raised objections to this un-
less the charge against him was with
After IN exchange Of verbal
between the attorneys for
he State and defense, the State with
drew Haney IS = witness and recalled
Grimm to the stand. He testified that
10 the best Of his belief the shot was
fired from the rear Of the train.
The noon hour having arrived,
noa,~H An~nL 1850. ,,~<i1 "a