The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-10-02
SCANNELLO ENTERS HIS PLEA IF GUILTY Highwayman Claims He Was Under Mafia Influence JURY GIVES HIM 20 YEARS He and Companion Created Great Ex. citement Near EnsIey Several
 Months Ago By Their
 Bold HoIdups.
JURY GIVES HIM 20 YEARS

By pleading guilty to three charges of highway robbery before Judge A. c. Howze yesterday afternoon. Sen Scan hello, a young Italian. received sen tence of only 20 years while each of the three was for hanging offense. Another feature of the trial was thaa the attorneys for the defense had agreed to accept a sentence for 30 years, which the jury cut down to 20.
 Scannello is the young Italian, who with another one of his countrymen, Louis Tomasino, stirred up so much excitement in the vicinity of Ensley and Wylam several months go by a num- Der of bold, daylight hold-ups, results ing In the death of Tomasino.
 The two men purchased two fancy carved. cheap shotguns and began theip operations about 8 o'clock one morning on the Mulga road. They first hailed James T. Lever. who was driving along the road in a buggy, and upon his refusal to stop opened fire on him. the bullets penetrating the back of. the buggy and landing in Levers back. After this the men switched about on the different roads and held up sev- eral persons during the morning. News of their operations spread quickly and the surrounding country was soon in state of wild excitement. Posses were formed and bloodhounds placed on the trail, tracking the men for sev- eral miles.
 Deputy sheriffs were scattered over the territory surrounding wylam and Ensley, and Chief Deputy Sheriff Lucien Brown and Deputy Sheriff Sid Cowan ran up on them in the midst of small settlement. A small sized battle then followed between the deputies and highwaymen, in which Tomasino was instantly killed and scannello wounded in the jaw. This was about o'clock in the afternoon.
 The grand jury returned three in- dictments against Scannello, William A. Hogan, James A. Goodby and James T. Lever being the three men he was charged with robbing.
 Frank Deedmeyer represented Scans hello, while Assistant Solicitor Aird handled the prosecution. It was frsu understood that scannello would enter a plea of insanity, but this was later changed by compromise being effected by which Scannello would plead guilty and receive a sentence of 30 years.
 Judge Howze ruled that it would nod be necessary to examine any witnesses. Mr. Aird stated the states position in regard to the compromise and Mir. Deedmeyer made short talk to tho jury, in which he stated that if the plea of guilty had not been entered that the defense would have pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. The defendant, he stated, could not speak English at the time the crimes were committed and was also in charge of a member of the Mafa society at the time, his life being threatened if he did not participate in the holdup operations of Tomasino.
 Judge Howze in his charge stated that the jury could either regard or disregard the compromise as they saw fit as it was their privilege to do any- thing they wished in capital punish- ment case. After remaining out few moments the jury returned and asked if 1t was possible for them to give a sentence of 10 years in each case. which Judge Howze advised them they could do. They returned to the jury room and a few moments later filed back into tho court room and rendered the verdict, which was for sentnece of 10 years in each of two cases and the third case marked off.
 s. Guarino, one of the most prominent Italians in the district and editor of the Il Libero Pensiero, was present in the court room and acted as interpre- ter while Judge Howze was sentencing the prisoner. Judge Howze advised Scannello to be on his good behavior and thereby reduce his sentence consid- erably. During his confinement in the county jail he proved a model prisoner.
 A large number of Italians were as- sembled in the court room during the trial and evinced the greatest interest in 1t.