The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-01-31
GIOFFRITTA
NOT GUILTY
Says Jury After Being Out
Three Hours.
PUBLIC NOT SURPRISED
Evidence Throughout Allow.
cd ExistanCe of Doubts.
Prisoner Who for Three Days Has
~ i,
PUBLIC NOT SURPRISED
Prisoner Who for Three Days Has
Been on Trial for His Life is Once
More a Free Man.

Giuseppe GoiniJta who for three
Idlys has becn on trial Tor his lie,
charged with the cold blo3ded muir
ler OF his brother, Lucca Giofritta,
on the morning of November "a
1896, is once more a free man
70 all inJen,s and purposes he has
paid his ueDt TO society as far as the
law is concerned. although he may
Lot have realized fully that he was
uirting with death he is undoubt-
gdIy one OF the happest Sicilians on
ne face Ok the earth today.
GignWIas case went 10 the Jury
shortly before FIVE o'cloci, Wednes-
lay evening and the jury was out
just two hours aud fifty minutes,
when Albert Oborn, the foreman,
handed W the report Oi mot gull
yy. There were but few per- )ns
present at this time, but the news
vas soon flashed about the city, aG!
those who heard the trial we're not
at all surprised The evidence
throughout was purely circumstan-
,.Gl and the conditions surround
ing the murder we've such that many
doubts existed.
Gohriuas defense was simply
tnat he didn't commit the crime,
and owing 10 the fact that the only
people who had knowledge of it
were Italians and many Of them
eat!yes Of the accused it was al
most impossible TO get any tangible
evidence that GioTritta was guilty.
The evidence was all in by two
O'Clock Wednesday afternoon, ana
Prosecutor Clark opened his argu-
ment for the state. He summed up
the evidence at hand; mentioned thf
fact that Gioifritta had purchased
'l6-guage shotgun a week before the
murder; that tins gun was kept III
plain view in his room until the
time OF the murder, when it myste,-
iously disappeared; tnat it was sub
aeluently found hidden away in
box which rad been nailed up ANA
covered with rubbish in a banana
cellar in which the accused was
employed that the state had proven
that Gioffritta had purchased lie
buckshot with which the shells were
loaded and that he had rushed into
the cellar and told Theodore Grassl
II you hear anything, don't say
anything
1he prosecutor felt that every cir-
cumstance pointed to the accused
as the guilty man, but of course he
had not direct testimony connecting
/ the little Italian with the murd2r
None knew of his whereabouts at
I the time Of the crime, and II has
never been satisfactorily explained.
/ lie was in bed a few minutes before
and a few minutes after he was
washing his hands in his room, bu-
the state nor the defense proved
where Goifiritta was when the crime
was supposed 10 have been commit.
Itel
Attorney George b. Scofeld made
the opening argument for the de-
Tense He dwelt cautiously upon the
/ theory worked out by the police
gave special attention TO the fart
that the state had not proven any
|roal guilt on the part of the defend
ant and had been absolutely unable
to dig mp and prove motive for
the crime, in the absence of which
ne felt the jury could not consider
the deliberate and premeditated
malice" clause Of the Indictment.
Mr. Scofeld was followed by NJ.
Justice, who at considerable length
took up the testimony bit by bit and
showed that there was every reasol
for jurors having a reasonable doubt
ana so long as this existed there
could be no conviction.
\ Prosecutor Clark then closed FOR
Che state and again went over prao-
tically The same argument he hal
made previously.
Judge Young's charge was quite
lengthy and was considered unsual ,
fair to both. the state and the de-
fense He gave the prisoner the ben