The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1908-02-04
HARRY THAW INSANE;
IN MATTEAWAH
Found Not Guilty of Numbering
White Because He Was Crazy.
SENT AT ONCE 70 ASYLUM
Jury DeIiberated Twenty-Five Hourl
and at First Stood Eight to Fous
For Acquittal-No Writ For Re.
lease Yet.

and at First Stood Eight to Fous
For Acquittal-No Writ For Re.
lease Yet.
New York City After deliber-
ating twenty-five hours the jury
which tried Harry Kendall Thaw for
the second time for the murder Of
J Stanford White on Madison Square
Roof Garden on the night Of June rs,
1906, returned to the courtroom with
a verdict acquitting the prisoner of
the crime on the ground that he was
insane when he shot White.
This was the verdict:
1--WE, the jury, find the defendant
not guilty of the charge in the indict-
ment on the ground that he was in
sane at the time of the commission Of
the act"
Supreme Court Justice Bowling at
once ordered the prisoner. to the State
Asylum for the Criminal Insane at
Matteawan, and Thaw was taken
there, leaving the Tombs four hours
after the verdict in charge of Deputy
Sheriff Bell He was taken to Grand
Central Station in Evelyn Nesbit
Thaw's electric brougham, his wife
accompanying him. Lawyers Daniel
O'Reilly and Peabody followed in an
other vehicle. Mrs. Thaw said good
bye to her husband at the station,
and saw him, accompanied by the two
lawyers and the guard, depart for
the asylum.
Just before he boarded the train
Thaw dictated this statement:
II am perfectly sane now, but am
going to Matteawan on the advice of
my counsel who thought it unwise to
sue for writ of habeas corpus at
this time. Counsel will proceed in
the matter of my release as soon as
they can get together the proofs they
will present that am at present sane.
| am confident that my stay at Mat
seawan will be for short period of
time only"
He arrived at the asylum at 10
o'clock that night and was put in the
observation ward for the present.
His number is 719. In the asylum he
will not be required to wear any uni
form.
Justice Bowling had allowed coun-
sci for. the defense until 3 o'clock p.
"a. to confer with Thaw pending the
beginning of his journey to Mattea-
wan. In that time it was decided that
no fight should be made for the pres
emit to keep Thaw out of the asylum.
Justice Dowling's formal order of
commitment said:
ITO the Sheriff of the County of New
York.
"The defendant on his trial on said
Indictment having been acquitted by
the jury on the grounds of insanity,
and the court being certified of the
fact, and the defendant being in GUS
tody, and the court deeming his dis
charge at this time detrimental to
the public safety, it is ordered that
said Harry K. Thaw be detained in
safe custody and be sent to Mattea-
wan State Hospital, and to be kept
there In said hospital till then dis
charged in due course of law. 1t is
further ordered that the Sheriff of
New York forthwith convey said
Harry K. Thaw to said hospital
VICTOR j. BOWLING,
Justice"
Both Mr.. Littleton and District At
torney Jerome declined to make any
statement as to how they felt about
the verdict. OF course Mr.. Littleton
was pleased and satisfied that the
course he had pursued in the trial had
been indicated. The friends of Mr..
/ Jerome said that the verdict was real
ly vindication for him, for at the
FIRST trial he had announced in open
court that he believed that Thaw was
Insane at the time of the shooting,
before that time and after that time
and II the facts were known Thaw
would not then have been on trial.
Although Mr.. Jerome had seven ex-
perts to testify before the lunacy COM
mission that Thaw was incurably in
sane, the commission decided that he
was able to advise with his counsel,
and there was nothing that Mr..
Jerome could do but to prosecute
No.