The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-01-29
LITTLETON WILL
MAKE PLEA TODAY
Taking of Evidence in ThaW
Case Ended, Jerome DecIin-
ing to Call Experts.
ASYLUM is LOOMING UP
MANIc-DEPREssIVE INSANITY is
RECURRENT.

New York, Jan. 28.-With no attempt
on the part of the state to combat
with scientific testimony the claim of
insanity urged in behalf of Harry K.
Thaw, the taking of evidence in the
second hearing of thes Madison Square
Garden murder trial ended today. To-
morrow morning Martin w Littleton
will begin his plea for the defendant,
and is expected to occupy both morn
ing and afternoon sessions with his
summins-up argument. District At
torney Jerome will speak on Thursday.
He has promised to be brief, and if his
address should not extend beyond the
morning session, Justice Bowling will
hand the case over to the jury on
Thursday afternoon. The court an
nounced. however. that he probably
would not deliver his charge until Fri
day morning.
Ignored the Experts.
Contrary to his policy of last year,
when he called nine experts in insanity
to the witness chair, Mr.. Jerome this
year utterly ignored the scientific phase
of the rebuttal case. He produced sew
eral eyewitnesses to the tragedy and
several police officers who handled
Thaw the night of the homicide, and
placed on record their opinion that the
defendants acts and manner were ra-
tional. Under agreement of counsel,
the testimony given by Abraham Hum
mel at the last trial was read to the
jury, and the Thaw win was admitted
in evidence without further proof as to
its custody during the six months fol-
lowing the shooting of Stanford White
The affidavit ALLEGED to have been
made by Evelyn Nesbit in HummePs
office, charging Thaw with cruelty and
attempting falsely TO place the blame
for the Nesbit girls downfall upon
Stanford White, also was admitted by
Justice Bowling, and then the case, so
far as testimony was concerned, was
at an end.
Jerome's Change of Front.
Mr.. Jerome's elimination of expert
testimony from the rebuttaI case occa-
stoned much talk. Based upon his as
sertiOns of last year that Thaw was
an incurable pananoiac. rumor had it
that the prosecutor might not be dis
pleased with a verdict of not guilty on
the ground of insanity, with an ensu-
ing committal of Harry Thaw to the
asylum for the criminal insane at Mat
teawan. Throughout the trial. however,
MIR. jerome has attempted to belittle
and discredit all testimony having TO
do with Thaw's irrationality. He has
attempted to show that the youthful
outbursts of the defendant were fits of
temper which deserved a spanking"
as he expressed it. rather than scien-
tific discussion. He has ATTEMPTED to
discredit the outbreaks in later life
with the suggestion that they were the
result of too much drink and nothing
more. That the prosecutor will ridi-
Guile the expert testimony is generally |
agreed. Having no experts of his own.
he has a free h"1d in that direction
this year.
Frustrated Plans of Defense.
Mr.. Jerome's move today also frus-
trated a plan of the defense to call in
sur-rebuttal several of the experts who
testified against Thaw at his last trial, |
but who, when Mr.. Jerome switched |
to the appointment of a lunacy com
mission. made affidavits setting forth !
the opinion that Thaw was so insane as
TO be incapable of understanding the |
nature of the proceedings against him, |
or of intelligently advising his counsel. |
Mr.. Littleton in his argument, which |
is expected to be an eloquent but |
straightforward presentation Of the |
facts. viii contend that the prosecution /
has failed to shake the case of insan- /
ity built up by the defense.
Burden of Proof on State.
He will again call attention to the
law and the burden of proof it places /
upon the state in a case where insanity /
is pleaded as a bar to responsibility for /
a criminal act He will contend, and /
viii ask Justice Bowling to carefully |
instruct the jury on the point, that /
once the defense has produced evidence /
of insanity il becomes the duty of the 4