The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1906-06-27
Iioyt Hayes Pardoned.

Governor Hayward announced Sat
urday afternoon that lie had granted
Hoyt Hayes full pardon. Hayes
was convicted OF numbering his wife
in OcOnee county in 1903 and twice
sentenced 10 DEATH Tiio case was ap-
pealed to the supreme court, but the
verdict Of the lover court WAS sustain
ed and Hayes was sentenced to hang
OH Oct. II, 1904. The sentence OF
death, however, was committed by the
governor TO life imprisonment and the
prisoner has since that time been con-
tined in the penitcntiary. Tho COVER
nors action in commIting tho sen
tcncc was based upcn grave doubts of
the guilt of Hayes. He has given tho
case a great deal of study and is now
convinced that there il not sufficient
withholding Of q pardon. The COVER
nor's action ls voluntary, no petition
having been presented in tho matter.
In anEO lncing his decision Governor
Heywaid gave out the following state
ment:
"Tho case Of IIoyt Hayes. convicted
| Of murder of his wife, hinged entirely
upon the authorship of the note found
IN tho room with the dead woman.
The hand that wrote the II .,ic commit
ted tho deed. If the woman did not
write the note, it was case Of nur-
der. IT the woman did write tho note.
1t was suicide. That is the whole case
in fact.
"Acting upon the evidence in tho
case produced lit the trial and the fur
thcr testimony of III ncknOw lctlged
| that there we're doubts of Hayes guilt
sufficiently strong to justify my inter
ference with the death sentence Of the
| court. and | therefore in Octnber, 1904,
committed the sentence to life impris-
| onment, expecting to study the case
further and to act properly at the
| proper time. have given the whole
case tho most careful and searching
study and am convinced that tho evil
Justify the withholding OF q pardon.
The note is the vital point in the
case. The celebrated handwriting
expert, Mr. David Carvalho, to whom
l referred the exhibits, declared une-
luivocalIy that the note was written
by Lula Hayes. This confirmed the
local experts examined on the stand
at the trial. Since then there has
been nothing to contradict MIR. Car
valho's conclusion but on the other
hand Mr.. Osborne, an expert to whom
the writings were referred by Solicitor
BOgRs, has reached the same opinion
and has declared in q letter to Mr..
BogRs that the note was undoubtedly
written by the woman. Ny own rs-
peated examinations Of all the ex-
hiblts has led me to the same conclu-
| OF Hoyt Hayes must be admitted.
"In the evidence produced at the
Two trials, OF the case there was moth
ing brought out to show motive for
the killing Of his wife by Hayes. In q
murder trial where the fact Of the
killing is admitted or proved 1T is held
not necessary to prove motive but the
fact that Hayes killed his wife is not
proved. Hence the absence Of motive
III this case is n strong factor. 1t ia
presumed that II it hnd been possible
TO establish motive the prosecution,
ABLY conducted as it was, would have
developed that point. On the contrary
there has been nothing brought out ut
either trial or since to disprove that
Hoyt Hayes and bis wife lived togcth-
er most amicably, to which fact their
nelghbors and families testified.
This case was not referred to the
new pardon board inasmuch ma had
begun its consideration, and had in
deed acted, before the creation of the
board, and 1t would not be fair either
to the board or to myself to appear now
to shift the burden of responsibility
from my shoulders to the shoulders Of
tuo Uoaf0.
Satisfied that justice will be sub
served thereby, 1 have granted Hayes
This ends one Of the most notable
cases in the criminal history of the
State= The alleged .ss:aae: cs h:s
wife ny Hayes caaeea the most intense
excitement in Oconee County at the
time and lynching was feared
Another storm of protest was raised
when, Governor Hayward commuted
the death sentence to life imprison-
ment, the feeling in Hayes home coun-
:; being particularly aggravated by
the governors aciiou. ihe. guilt va
Hayes hinged on the authorship Of the
follows:
: am treated we'll by Hoyt, but 1 had
rather Ole than 70 have the pain and
i write TO let you know did it,"
Guilty or not guilty, the final chap
written, and Hayes faces the world
again, free man.