Los Angeles herald., 1908-08-14
MANIAC KILLS
DAUGHTER AND
SON WITH AK
WOUNDS WIFE AND TRIES TO
COMMIT SUICIDE
HAD PLANNED AWFUL TRAGEDY
MOST DELIBERATELY
Bodies of the Victims Hacked and
Pounded RemorseIessIy by Insane
Murderer Long After Life
Had Been Extinct

stoned to slay his son and daughter,
Henry ]. Duffy placed their tomb
stones and his own in Evergreen cem-
etery and early yesterday morning took,
the lives of the son, Fred A. Duffy, anq
his daughter, Mrs Ferdinand La Com,
afterward attempting to kill himself.
He will recover, 1t is believed.
Duffy, who is Sc years old, lived with
his son Fred in a small three-room
cottage at 247 North Mountain View
street Here the father planned the
murders, apparently waiting, from his
| testimony at religious meetings, until
he felt that he should receive a call
to end the lives of the children he
seemed to love. Mrs. zaidah La Com,
| the daughter, and her husband and
6-year-old child, Margaret, owned their
own home, a pretty bungalow at 453
| North Westlake avenue.
| Fred Duffy, who was "a years old
and an automobile machinist, was
| killed while asleep in bed. His face
was turned away from the door
through which his father noiselessly
entered, carrying huge ak, which he
| had sharpened to a razor edge for his
| terrible purpose. With as calm and
deft a blow as though he were telling
| a tree the murderer struck his son pre-
cisely in the center of the neck, prac-
tically beheading him. Death was in
stantaneous, and the young man never
| knew that he had been assailed. To
make death more certain the father
continued his assault, striking the head
and inflicting cuts and gouges on the
jaw and ear.
Prepares for Second Victim
The elder Duffy then walked to the
| little kitchen, where he washed his
| hands, changed his shirt and other
wise arranged his appearance to avoid
suspicion, Taking up the AK he climbed
the hill UP Mountain View street to the
La Com home, less than two blocks
away.
Mr.. La Com had gone to his work at
| 24015 South San Pedro street. His pref
| ty wife would have been mother with
| in a week. She and Mrs. Duffy, who
| had lived with her since obtaining a
divorce, nine years ago, had just fin-
| ished breakfast. The mother was In
| the kitchen washing the dishes, and
7 the daughter was clearing away the
table. 1t was shortly before o'clock
when Duffy entered. Because of their
children the older couple kept on
quently taken breakfast with the La
CONS.
Duffy lifted his ak behind his in
| tended victim and struck her glanc-
| ing blow on the back of the head. Her
scream at once brought her mother
InG utOOiiiJ anu H+AS
grappled with the insane man, recelv-
| ing a blow on the arm from which the
blood streamed. Still she struggled with
| her husband until the daughters
mother-love called to her.
"Save Margaret! Take her and rum"
called Mrs. La Com, and the elder wo-
man. seizing the child, ran through the
front door and across the street to the
| residence of Mrs. Evelyn Leeman, 452
| North Westlake avenue.
Duffy again struck Mrs. La Com, and
the keen edge of the ak almost cut the
head from the body leaving but
fragment of flesh to connect them. He
hacked and pounded the body again
and again in his frenzy, until fully
convinced that he had succeeded. Then
walking through the back yard, he
threw the ak into a clump of weeds
and went down Mountain View street
| to his home.
Here he carefully locked the door and
slashed his throat with butcher knife,
! hoping to take his own life.
Head Was Almost Severed
Mrs. Duffy ran back to aid her
daughter whom she found lying still
on blood-stained rug. Kissing her,
she called excitedly until she saw that
her daughters head was almost severed
from the body Mrs. Leeman and other
neighbors had followed. Orange Hinkle,
a colored man living at 457 Mountain
View street hastened to the Duffy
house, hoping to warn Fred Duffy. He
was unable to get the door open, but
Duffy could be seen writhing and vom-
iting on the mattress which, stretched
upon the floor in the first room, served
him as bed.
Mrs. A. B. Kelly, proprietor of a con-
fectionery store. at the corner of Tenn
pie and Westlake avenues, notified the
police and got word to Ferdinand La
| Com Motorcycle Officer Coe was sent
to the La Com house, where he was
urged by Mrs. Duffy to hasten to the
other house in the hope of protecting
her son. He was accompanied by G.
H. Perry of 257 Mountain View street.
Coe carried key which unlocked
the door of the Duffy home. He found
DUFFY conscious, but feebly endeavor-
ing to slash the arteries of his throat.
@Here. Cap, what's the matter with
you?" said the officer, drawing his re-
yoiver. Drop that knife or I'll shoot
you"
to die" answered Duffy. "Shoot me if
you want to-.
Seeing that threats were useless, Coe
iumped at the man, who turned his
knife on the officer. Coe received a
cut on the hand, ran into the yard and
obtained a club. With this he knocked
DuftXS lanQ QOWn anu SGNSidl lliilSS
prevented him from cutting his throat.
Detectives Boyd and Jones arrived and
the three officers disarmed Duffy and
took him to the receiving hospital,
where Police Surgeons Bonynge and
Garrett and DIR. Harry Chamberlain
dressed his wounds. Duffy had not
succeeded in injuring himself seriously.
and unless his mental condition grows
worse he will recover. He has been
sufferer from locomotor ataxla ana MS
Gus condition.
Last night Duffy was secured with
leather straps so that he could not
carry out his attempt to kill himself.
as he frankly admits he would. If per-
mitted.
''If the attendants would only re-
lease my hands I would quickly end
my life,'' he said to Hereld reporter
IT don't remember clearly what hap
pened this morning. I can remember
family that arose early. walked to
the bedside where my son lay sleeping
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