The San Francisco call., 1908-12-24
DIPLOMAT SLAYER
GUILTY OF MURDER
Convicted OF Second Degree
Killing After Jury DeIiber-
ates Two Hours
Korean Who Slew Durham
White Stevens Faces Inn
prisonment for Life

In Whan Chang. the Korean who shot
and killed Durham White Stevens, the
American diplomat in the service of
Japan, was found guilty of murder in
the second degree shortly before mid
night last night after the jury trying
his case had been in deliberation for
hours and is minutes.
The verdict was one of three which
Judge Carroll Cook had instructed the
jury could be returned against the de-
fendant. If guilty, the court charged.
Chang's crime must be found to be
murder in the first degree, murder in
the second degree or manslaughter The
first of eight ballots taken in the jury
room revealed that seven Jurors were
for conviction and five for acquittal In
the fourth ballot three men voted for
murder in the first degree. five for
murder in the second degree and four
were in favor of manslaughter. on
the sixth ballot nine stood for murder
in the second degree and three for man
slaughter. On the eighth ballot the
opinions were unanimously in favor of
a verdict of murder in the second de-
gree.
PRISONER is STOICAL
Chang displayed no emotions when
| informed of his fate, but maintained
/ tAc oetiIC StOitcA oil tudI lie mas mani
| tested throughout the trial. He was
the recipient of condolences from his
| counsel and from a score of Koreans
| who had gathered in the courtroom to
! listen to the verdict He was assured
| that there were yet hopes that the
higher courts would intervene in his
case and perhaps give him a new trial
| but he appeared Indifferent to all ad-
vice and waved away his comforters.
4 Ia fol
taken to the county jail
Judge Cook announced that sentence
would be pronounced Saturday morning.
and, according to the charges given by
the court to the jury, Chang's penalty
will be life imprisonment.
/ The argument in the case occupied
the entire morning and greater part
of the afternoon. Counsel for the de-
fense-Nat Coghlan. John J. Barrett
and Robert Ferra1-made eloquent
pleas in behalf of their client. Korean
history, stories of oppression and of
! ravages on the part of the Japanese
! flowed freely from the lips of the at
torneys. and each man contended that
| Chang killed Stevens while insane and
that his mind had become fired with
intense patriotism and he was not
aware of the seriousness of his crime.
BARRETT BEGINS ARGUMENT
| Barrett opened the argument for the
| defense and was followed by Samuel
| Knight, special counsel. assisting the
| district attorney. Knight declared that
| Chang was not insane and that the
murder of Stevens was not only de-
| liberately planned. but of the most
| vicious character due to the fact that
| Chang and his countryman. Chung, lay
| In wait several hours for Stevens. and
when the diplomat did appear at the
| ferry the plot was carried out as
| planned. Ferral followed knight, and
| Coghlan made a final plea in behalf OF
| the defense, arguing that Korea had
been. turned over to the Japanese gov
ernment through the Vaccinations OF
| Stevens.
The crime of which Chang was con-
victed startled not only San Francisco
but diplomatic circles all over the
world On March % of this year Stew
ems was shot at the ferry building
while about to leave for the east on a
visit to relatives. Chang was captured
| upon the scene and eye witnesses who
| saw the tragedy found the revolver
with which the killing was accom-
plished. Stevens was taken to the har-
Dor emergency hospital and again to
| the St Francis hospital, where he sue
cumbed to his wounds
| The defense made by Chang was in
| sanity, and to discount this theory the
prosecution produced expert witnesses
who testified that Chang was sane and
at times simulated insanity.
The jurors who tried Chang were
! Thomas Brady John Davis, II. VOL
king, f. Fl. Elliot iforeman) C. Egan
Patrick Lyons, e. P. McKnew. Frank
Seames, James w. KentzeI, T. III. Vor
| E,nde and e. c. O'Neill.
| The jury retired for deliberation al
9.17 o'clock last evening and returned
at 11:35 o'clock.