Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1908-12-03
WIFE AND SERVANT
OF RUSTIN TESTIFY
One of Witnesses Nearly colIapses
Under the Severe Examination,
but Other Is Not
Shaken

OMAHA, Neb., Dec. 1.-TWO women,
Mrs. Rustin and Hannah Dineen,
servant in the Rustin home, were the
principal witnesses in the trial today
of Charles r. Davis, charged with the
murder of DR.. Frederick Rustin.
Mrs. Rustin had little difficulty in
parrying the severe cross-examination
of Attorney Gurley, who forced her 10
identify insurance policies on her nus
bands life, which We're incontestable
in the event of the person insured com
hitting suicide.
Miss Dineen, however, lost the COM
posure which characterized her testi-
mony at the coroner's inquest and pre-
liminary hearings, and all but coll
lapsed during the direct examination
by States Attorney English, and the
session of court was suspended ten
minutes until she recovered.
Miss Dineen's testimony clearly cor
roborated that of Mrs. Rustin, and in
addition she testified to having seen a
standing near the Rustin home just
before midnight, when she returned
from a visit to her sister
Technical testimony was given by
DR.. w. r. Lavender, who performed
the autopsy on DIR. Rustin's body. De-
spite the efforts of Davis counsel, DIR.
Lavender was permitted to give eX-
pert IRSllilOHNt uuilIB NlllNI llG GA
pressed the opinion that the shot which
killed the physician was not self-in-
flicted.
The court room was filed to suffoca-
ton by a crowd that expected to see
and hear Mrs. Abbie Rice. She will
not give her testimony until tomorrow.
Policy of Defense
1t was the policy of the defense to
secure the exclusion of all that portion
Of the story tending to cast suspicion
upon the defendant in the present trial,
and in event of failure to do this, to
endeavor in the cross-examination to
create in the minds of the jury the
question whether or not Mrs. Rice did
after all fire the fatal shot, or make
away with the pistol after DR.. Rustin
had shot himself in her presence.
When court opened Attorney Gurley,
for the defense, asked Mrs. Rustin to
produce certain insurance papers on
the life of her husband. She said her
lawyer had them and would produce
them.
Mrs Rustin said she recalled but two
nights during the two weeks from the
time of her return from a visit out of
town until the night of his death when
DR.. Rustin was at home all night
The desired life insurance policies
having been brought into court and
posed by the defense to show that the
policies contained provisions making
them incontestacle except for non-pay-
ment of premium.
The prosecution objected to introduce
ing this matter as a part of Mrs Rus
tins testimony, so it was deferred.
DIR. Willard Langfeldt, who was a
neighbor of DR.. Rustin and was called
by Mrs. Rustin soon after the shooting
of her husband, testified that the call
came approximately twenty minutes of
4. He said that although he had never
heard her speak before he received the
impression that it was Mrs. Rustir
talking. He could not account for the
impression.
After describing the condition in
which he found DR.. Rustin, he said:
1T asked Mrs. Rustin, How did this
happen?' and she answered that she
heard a. shot and found her husband
outside. Nothing more was said on the
subject"
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