Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1907-04-01
THAW GAINING
BY COMMISSION
ANSWERS MANY QUESTIONS IN A
RATIONAL MANNER.
: JEROME LOSES A POINT
State of Mind of Defendant at Time
White Was Killed Will not Be In
cluded in the Inquiry, the Question
Being Merely His Ability to Under
stand Trial.

New York, March 29.-Harry K.
Thaw for two hours yesterday sub
mitted himself TO running fire of
questions from the commissioners in
lunacy. The examination was con
Quoted behind closed doors and when
adjournment was taken until Satur-
dap no one connected with the hear
ing before the commissioners would
discuss the details of the inquiry.
Thaw went willingly and confidently
before his judges, and when the two
hours secret session was concluded
his attorneys appeared with smiling
faces and declared that they were
more than satisfied with the course of
the proceedings. Jerome hurried away
from the criminal court building, de-
clining absolutely to say one word
about the commissions work.
The most important feature of the
days proceedings was the decision of
the commission to limit the scope of
the inquiry to the exact language of
the statute-to determine sOlemnly
the question as to whether or not
Thaw is able today to understand the
nature of the court proceedings
against him and is able to advise his
counsel in a rational manner Jerome
announced to the commission that all
the legal experts he had employed in
the case had advised him that Thaw
is suffering from q typical case of
paranoia-a disease of the mind in
which recoveries are limited to two or
three per cent. He offered to adduce
testimony to support this statement,
but the commission waived it aside,
saying the purpose of the inquiry was
very simple one and had to do not
with any classification of mental dis
eases, but with the prisoners present
state of mind as judged by laymen.
In laying down this decision the
commission confronted the district at
torney with the very position he has
maintained in putting Thaw on trial
for his life. Jerome contends that
Thaw was suffering from paranoia on
the night of June % last, when he
shot and killed White, but he added
that paranoiacs often have knowledge
of what they are doing and that Thaw
knew the nature and quality of his act
in killing White and knew that the
act was wrong. Thus, while medical
experts may determine today that
Thaw is still suffering from paranoia,
the question to which the commission
has decided to confine itself deals
solely with Thaw's knowledge as TO
the proceedings against him and his
ability to advise his lawyers
Commission Acts Quickly.
The commission got under way with
a rush and plunged into the personal
examination of the defendant. Je
rome protested at first that he was
not able to proceed, saying he would
like to have his medical advisers pres
Sants during Thaw's examination. He
-in&iiy stated that he would have no
objection to the examination going
forward, providing he was permitted |
to reserve his ross-eXamination. The |
commission forthwith settled the mat |
ter of the presence of experts by ex-
Guiding them from the room along |
with everyone else, except the defend |
ant and his counsel, the district at
tOrney and assistant district attorney, |
Garvan. AS TO cross-examination by
the district attorney, the commission |
said the matter would be taken up |
when it was reached 1t is stated |
that during most of the two hours |
Thaw was before the commission, |
notes and letters which he has writ !
ten to his counsel since the trial be- |
gan were under consideration. To put
Thaw thoroughly at ease, the commits |
sioners addressed their questions to |
him in a conversational tone, and in a
casual manner. as though he were in |
conference with them, and asked him
from time TO time to explain incidents |
in the trial which had called forth
certain letters placed before the COM |
mission by Thaw's attorneys. 1t was
said that Thaw answered the ques- I
tions calmly and went into lengthy /
explanations Of some Of the notes he
had addressed TO Delmas while his
trial was in progress. These notes |
and letters were made a part of the |
affidavit filed by Delmas with Justice
Fitzgerald when Thaw's counsel were