Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-01-30
Prosecutor Pleads That His Per-
sonal Conduct Has Nothing
to do With the Case
REGRETS HIS LACK OF DIGNITY
District Attorney Comes Close to Ad-
mittins That snserins Remarks
We're UncaIled For-case Will Go to
Jury EARLY Friday-Jeroms's Clos
ina Plea for the People.

New York, Jan. 30.-There was an
other great crush at the criminal
courts building today to hear District
ATTORNEY Jerome make the closing ad-
dress for the people in. the ThaW case.
Evelyn Nesbit ThaW and Josiah
ThaW were the only members OF de-
fendant's family present when Jerome
began his argument. He declared the,
case had been handled by him with
some difficulty, rs he had many other
matters Of Importance to attend to at
the same time. "Lf Lat any time lacked
in the dignity that attaches to my Of
fice," continued the prosecutor, IF l
have shown any asperity or lack OF
consideration, can only say now re-
gret it. Any personal impression
have made or have not made should
have no part whatever in your ver-
dict; you are not trying the district at
torney. Any sneers he may have made
are not evidence for the people, and
neither are they any evidence tnat
ThaW was insane when he Killed
White. AS to the woman, If my man
ner was one of disapprobation, that is
not evidence Neither l nor the woman
is being tried here. Harry ThaW is
on trial for the murder of White, and
the defense is that he was insane on
) the night of June %, 1906, and that he
was not generally insane or Is he in
n1,
with is whether or not at the particu-
lar time and place defendant was IN
sane-whether when he killed White
the act was wrong and against the law
of the land"
Il shall endeavor," Jerome added,
coIdly, "to dispose of the evidence In
this case-to do it step by step, and
show the bur,>.n the law places upon
defense, the proving of the insanity
of this defendant and that 1t has not
been met" He declared ThaW plainly
had a motive for killing White. Every
act of his for two or three weeks be-
fore the tragedy pointed to his deadly,
consuming hat, of the man he killed.
i ut matters not whether you believe
the girls story of drugging or not"
declared Jerome, "the relationship of
this middle aged married man with
the girl of Is ought to have no. ef-
feet. No decent man can say the
Lord is his defense. l certainly have
no intention or doing so, but with all
the things I have pointed out to you,
if there was no motive in the heart
of this defendant, can imagine moth
ing that can create a motive"
The prosecutor took up one by one
the facts Of Thaw on the roof garden
and Immediately following the trag-
edy, and asserted they all pointed
to full knowledge of what he was do
ing.
Jerome signified very plainly that he
believed justice would be served If
the defendant be found guilty in some
lesser degree of nominal responsibility
than murder in the first degree. He
explained carefully, all the elements
that entered into verdict of first de-
gree murder, then pointed the way
to two other possible findings Of mur-
der in the second degree, or man
Slaughter in the first. Jerome sur
prised his hearers today by the strik-
ing contrast of his argument with that
of a year ago. His vindictiveness was
was gone, and denunciation of Evelyn
Nesbit had no place in his remarks. In
stead, there was a calm. analytical
presentation of the evidence, con-
cession of possible weakness, both
mental and physical in the defendant,
but always recurrence to the hard
and fast rule of the law that a man to
be excused must be so insane as not
to know what he was about. Jerome
declared dramatically that there was
no doubt that White had done Evelyn
Nesbit a great wrong, and that Thaw
had every motive for revengeful mur-
der upon the man he killed. This
motive, he asserted, forever swept
away the claim of insanity which
knows not what it does.
Justice Downing announced at the
luncheon recess that he would not
charge the jury until tomorrow NOR
ming. Jerome will conclude this after
noon.