Omaha daily bee., 1907-01-04
MRS. LILLE GIVEN. PARDON
Woman Released as 0us Of Last Official
Act. IF Governor Mickey.
HAD SERVED TwoYEARs or LIFE SENTENCE
Convicted of killing Husband, Harvey
Lille, at David City, and Case
Was Before Several
Courts.
CFrom a Stan correspondent)

From Stan Correspondent
LINCOLN. jan 3--(Specisl Telegram.)- |
| Governor Mickey has pardoned Mrs. Mar |
garet Lille, convicted of the murder of |
her husband. Harvey Lille.
The pardon was signed shortly after II
o'clock and Mrs, Lille was released at
once.
She wss sentenced for life and entered |
the penitentiary January 10, 1906.
The issuing of this pardon was the last |
official act Of the governor before retiring
| from office.
Governor Mickey issued the following
statement regarding the case:
In the Lena Margaret Lille pardon case,
due notice of hearing as per statute hav-
forth new evidence in the case having been
| submitted and argument made in the pres
enee OF the county attorney OF Butler
| of the case having been had, and after
many days of elaboration and STUDY of the
| testimony as submitted to the court and
| submitted at the time of hearing for par
don, l am clearly led to the conclusion that
there is very grave and serious doubt of
her guilt, and am. compelled in my own
unbiased and sincere judgment to grant
her pardon. Lena Margaret Lille is this
day at 1880 p. m. granted a full and com
plete pardon
Mrs. Lille was almost overcome by the
| news, but she began to make preparations
to leave the penitentiary at once Her father,
]. f. Hill, was in Lincoln and went at
once to the prison after the pardon was
announced. He will take Mrs. Lille with
him to his home in California, where Mrs.
Lilies 1S-year-old daughter is now living.
Before going there they will visit Mr.. Lii
lies mother, who lives at Bellwood, Butler
county, and who has always maintained a
firm belief in Mrs. Lilies Innocence.
Brings Joy to Niece.
NORFOLK. Neb., Jan. s-(special Tele-
gram. Miss May Lille of Norfolk. niece
of the pardoned woman, and who lived
with her uncle and aunt at the time Of
the murder, overjoyed this afternoon
when she learned OF Governor Mickey's
act. She has always believed her aunt to
be innocent and declared in the trial that
the dead man and the pardoned woman en-
joted harmonious and happy relations.
Miss Lille heard no burglar. but believes
the burglar theory. She says her aunt
will go to Los Angeles, where the parents
of the pardoned woman, as well her
little daughter, now live.
Former United States Senator william
v. Allen, who gave his services in arguing
the case of Mrs Lille before the supreme
court for retrial, was much gratifed when
informed over the telephone of Mrs. Lilies
pardon and declared that Governor Mickey
had done a righteous act Mrs. Lille was
never convicted" he said. "It is law that
in circumstantal case charging homicide
the evidence must prove that deadly
weapon had passed into the hand of the
defendant. 1t w5s never shown that Mrs.
Lille ever possessed a deadly weapon. She
should have testified in her own behalf in
the first trial, as she wanted to, but her
, lawyer refused. He made mistake"
The crime for which Mrs Lille SEN
fenced to- the penitentiary was the murder
, Of her husband which occurred about $50
o'clock on the morning of Friday, October
a. 1902. Mr. and Mrs. Lille had been out
the evening before visiting the formers
sister and mother. According to Mrs.
Z Lilies story she was awakened in the
morning and saw d man pointing a revolver
at her. She rolled of OF the bed in order
} to avoid being shot and the man fred
through the window and then fed. She
| alleged that 500 had been taken from the
bureau drawer. Her husband had been
shot before she awoke.
In the trial Mrs. Lille was defended by
Judge Miller and c. r. Aldrich. Judge
4 f. G. Hamer of Kearney Is the lawyer
! who made such a persistent fight before
} the supreme court and the governor first
for new trial and then for pardon. AZ
: ter three unsuccessful attempts to secure
3 a new trial. Judge Hamer declared he
: would never drop the case until Mrs Lille
was out of the penitentiary. The trial
, began February 10, 1908. and lasted
twenty-three days She was found guilty.
3 Since that time every effort has been made
! to get her a new trial or a pardon from
) the penitentiary. Probably no case ever
aroused as much interest in the state as
a that of Mrs. Lille One of the most amaz-
: ing features of 1t WAC that Mrs. Lille her
r self refused to say word She kept abso-
Lutte silence through the trial to the man.
ner in which her husband met his death.
No expense was spared to secure an ac-
quittal The case was argued for a whole
= day. Her motion for new trial was
argued for three days and after several
= weeks of elaboration was denied. Then
: there were lengthy proceedings in the SUI
3 preme court. All failed and the verdict
D reached by the jury in short time was
carried out and the woman sentenced to
r the penitentiary for life. There she has
y remained, wrapped In her old silence. This
7 one woman who knows how her husband
met his death has preserved her silence
during these years unbroken.
Course of the Bullets.
Y Much time was spent in studying the
g course of the bullets which according to
: Mrs. Lilies story of a burglar firing the
a fatal shot. must have been fired. Four
sewing girls were sleeping in the house on
the night Of the murder. Two OF these
e testified that they heard the first shot.
that about ten seconds interviewed before
the second shot and that following the
! second. they heard Mrs. Lille scream that
y some one had shot her husband. At this
Z time Mrs. Lille was in the hall and she
I was the first to get down stairs and tele-
e phone for help.
$ Mr.. Lille was shot in the right side OF
: the head, the side next to his wife. There
: was burned powder in the wound, indica-
: ting that the shot was fired at close range
: There was also burned powder on the cur
: tains and on the window pane through
! which the second shot was fired. indicating
!, that the revolver was held close to the
!, window when this shot was fired
y The theory of the state at the trial was
y that Mrs. Lille shot her husband while in
Il bed by the light OF the moon then shining