Lewiston evening teller. [volume] (Lewiston, Idaho) 1903-1911, 1907-11-27
WIFE CHARGED
WITH MURDER
ATTORNEY ABEL SAYS. WOMAN
SHOULD BE PROSECUTED
COUNTY OFFICIALS CHARGED
WITH NEGLIGENCE OF DUTY.

SEATTLE, Nov. 27.-That. Frank
H. Todd of Hoquiam was murdered
by his wife and that her escape from
punishment, if she does escape, is
due only to abortive efforts to prose-
cute on the part of the county OFF,
cials of Chehalis, is the declaration
of w. H. Abel, lawyer for Ralph
Steele, who while under the charge
for the crime which startled the
state of Washington, took his own
life in the county Jail at Hoquiam.
Abel has severed his connection
with the case, and is at present stay
ing at the Seattle hotel, being in this
city on legal business. Discussing
the case last night Mr.. Abel said.
''The strange part of Mrs. Todd's
conduct after the murder of her hus-
band was that she at first declared
that she was afraid to incriminate
Steele for fear he would do her bod
lily harm. Later she met me in the
Office of Attorney P. H. Mckay and
told me she was willing to pay for
the defense of Steele. This of itself
would indicate her relations with
the accused man Some of the, points
in the evidence which are against
Mrs. Todd are as follows:
"She admitted intimacy with
Steele, She admitted that she had
promised to marry Steele, though her
husband was yet living, She had
disagreed with her husband at one
time and had eloped with another
man. She stated on the morning
after the murder that she had not
missed her husband until she found
! his body in the woodshed; later she
declared she saw Steele bending over
her husbands body after the blow
had been struck.
Mrs. Todd is known to have pur-
chased chloroform and laudanum be-
fore the murder. of her husband. Two
chloroform bottles were found on the
kitchen table the morning after the
murder. The odor of chloroform
was detected in the house on the
morning after the murder. Deputy
Sheriff Anstie declares that he found
woman's bloody apron in the vicin-
fly of the Todd home Neighbors
declare that blood stains were dis
covered leading from the woodshed
to Mrs. Todd's room after the MUIR
der. -
MRS. Todd, after declaring that
she was afraid of Steele, offered to
loan money to pay Steele's attorney
She followed a plan suggested by
Steele to act as detective against
Steele so she could visit him without
suspicion. She has admitted since
Steele's suicide that she had intend
ed to run away with him. She stat
ed that at her last meeting with
Steele she had discovered he did not
care for her. but wanted her money,
whereupon she decided to, and did.
announce, first, that Steele had con-
fessed to the murder and, second,
that she had practically seen him do
the deed
"These are some of the principal
circumstances, which to my mind
viii make it very hard for Mrs. Todd
to prove her innocence. 7 have moth
ing to do with the case. and my opin-
ion is entirely without bias.
"Officials in Houuiam made serf-
GUS b1unders at the opening Of the
case. County Prosecuting Attorney
r. f. Boner failed to put Mrs Todd
on the witness stand at the inquest.
and he also failed to act upon the
advice of Chief of Police Schneider
OF Hoquiam. who advised that Steele
and Mrs. Todd be locked up in sepa-
rate cells. If this had been done,
their conflicting testimony would
easily disclose the guilty person. In
stead of that the two were permitted
to be in constant communication"