The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1907-03-19
. TRIAL DRAGGING.
Entire Morning Session of Court
in ThaW Case
Is Spent in the Examination of
One Medical Expert.
FREQUENT CLASHES.
Between the Witness and the
District Attorney.
Four More Experts Will Be
Called by the Defense.

nation of DIR. Smith Ely Jelliffe, in
sanity expert for the defense, occupied
the whole of the morning session of
the Thaw trial. The district attorney
produced a medical work edited by Dr.
Jelliffe and interrogated the witness
regarding the contents of many of its
| chapters. There were frequent wrang-
les between the prosecutor and the
i'witness.
Mr.. Delmas, during the cross ex-
animation, noted exceptions to several
| of Mr.. Jerome's remarks on the
ground of misconduct. He also OBJ
jected to the whole course of the cross
examination. but Justice Fitzgerald
overruled all objections. When Mr..
Jerome had completed his long cross
examination, Mr.. Delmas undertook an
extra redirect amination. DR.. Jel-
/ life said that it was his opinion that
Thaw had been insane-suffering from
a paranoic form of some insanity-for
at least two and half years prior to
the tragedy.
| Four more experts will be called in
behalf of Thow.
Each will be asked basing his
opinion on the district attorneys hy-
pothetical question whether in his
opinion Thaw when he shot White,
knew the nature and quality of his act
and knew that it was wrong. Each
will reply that in his opinion Thaw did
not. Mr.. Jerome's cross examination
pro- badly will be brief and there is lit
tie doubt that all the evidence in the
case will be in before court adjourns
tomorrow.
Thaw's attorneys stated last night
that Evelyn Nesbit Thaw would not be
recalled to the witness stand. The
,Ixr Il -I,z i i L.
again deny that she told Hummel that
she had been beaten by Thaw and
deny again that she knew what was in
the famous affidavit when she signed
it. 1t is not believed that this would
be of any value to the defense as she
has already told all her side of the
story The attorneys for the defense
state that they do not consider that
the Introduction of the affidavit has
done their case the slightest harm,
while District Attorney Jerome is
quoted as saying that he considers it
one of the strongest features in his
case.
Under the agreement each side will
take one day for the summing up. II
the case is finished today Mr.. Delmas
will begin his address to the jury on
Wednesday morning and Mr.. Jerome
will begin Thursday morning. 1t is
probable that Justice Fitzgerald will
charge the jury the following morning
and the case should go to the jury by
noon Friday.
Mr.. Delmas in his address to the
jury will urge the acquittal of Thaw
on the theory that he was temporarily
insane at the time he killed White.
He will argue that the defense has
shown beyond doubt that Thaw's mind
was un nhinged by the story which Eve
lyn Nesbit Thaw told him before they
were married and that it was while in
a condition of mental frresponsibility
that he took Whites life. He will at
tempt to discredit Abraham HummeI
who has testified that Evelyn Thaw
told him everything that was in the
affidavit by showing Hummel's record.
District Attorney Jerome will argue
for conviction for murder in the first
degree. He will claim that there is
nothing in the case to show that Thaw
suffered from anything more than
jealousy and that his hatred for
White, who had been his wife's lover
before he married her with full know
ledge of this fact. led him to revenge
himself by taking Whites life.
The case has been brought to the
last ditch by both sides and what the
jury will do no one can tell. In case
of a conviction there will, of course.
be an immediate motion for a new
trial. Delmas has saved all his ex-
ceptions and his constant objecting
may have served to inject a reversible
error into the case.
Cross Examination of Experts.
New York March 19.-District At
torney Jerome at the Thaw trial this
morning continued his cross examina-
ton of DR.. Smith Ely Jelliffe, one of
the alienists for the defense who was
on the stand yesterday afternoon when
adjournment was taken.
In your answer TO the hypothetical
question, DOCTOR" began Mr.. Jerome,
"'did you interpret the question in the
light. of facts which are outside the
question ?"
'sWhy. in way. certainly an
swered DR.. Jelliffe. My knowledge of
the alphabet allowed me to read the
question but there is nothing about
that in the question.
did you answer it in the light of
information furnished you about this
defendant not in the hypothetical
question:"
Did you have such informatio %
81 did
Did you deem this information of
Importance
Il deemed it of value
'-But you excluded these facts in
framing your answer
so far as it is possible for the hu-
man mind to exclude such things. 1
did. 1 have tried to answer con-
scientiously.
Mr.. Jerome produced a book edited
by Dr. Jelliffe and attempted to induce
the alienist to admit classification of
insanity contained therein. Mr. Je-
rome took up each class of insanity
mentioned in the book. one after the
other, and asked the witness il that
was the class of insanity ThaW was
suffering from when he shot White.
The witness before answering each
question insisted upon reading the de-
scriptions given in the book. The
cross examination dragged along at
great length and was something of
- g n H.