The San Francisco call., 1909-11-25
Joe Armes' Slayer Not Rational
at Time OF Shooting Is
Jnry's Decision
Three Ballots Taken Before
Twelve Men Trying Girl
Reach Verdict
Brothers of Young Woman Plan
to Send Her East to Begin
Life Anew s

A UBURN, Nov. 24.-Alma Bel1
"A was acquitted today of the
= murder OF Joe Armes, her
lover, committed june of this year.
The jury was out an hour and half
The verdict was rendered on the
ground that Alma Bell was insane at
the moment of the shooting, but was
sane Immediately before and immedi-
ately after the homicide. The in
structions of Judge Arnot were to
this effect
Alma Bell Released
After the verdict Alma Bell was re-
leased from custody and received the
congratulations of her attorneys,
friends and members of the family.
Her Brothers declared this morning
that they would send her to relatives
in the east, where her history is not
known. q
The jury took three ballots, the first
being eight for acquittal, one for man
slaughter, one for murder in the sec
ond degree, and two blank The sec
ond ballot was two for conviction, the
third ballot being unanimous for ac-
quitta1
History of Case
Alma Bell was accused of shooting
.her lover, Joe Armes. The girl called
-Armes from the cabin where he was
sleeping with his brothers, and shortly
afterward pistol shot was heard from
the direction in which the couple had
gone Frank and Manuel Armes.
brothers of Joe, and Tony Grinko, who
was also in the cabin. rushed out and
found the body The sherir was noti-
fed and the next morning he found
Alma Bell crouching in the brush near
the scene of the shooting
After the shooting Miss Bell went to
a nearby ranch house and told the in
mates that she had killed her lover.
She left. but returned later and said
that she knew he was not dead because
she could hear him crying She left
for the second time and was not seen
again until she was found the next
morning by Sheriff McAuley.
Visited Lovers Cabin
On the night of the shooting Alma.
Bell came to the chain occupied by Joe
Armes and his brother and demanded
admittance that she might explain some
stories which she asserted had been
told about her. After some parley she
was admitted and remained in the
cabin two hours. On leaving she per-
susded her lover to accompany her
and. according to the testimony of the
brothers. a shot was heard a moment
later. Immediately following the shot
the brothers asserted that Joe cried
."Oh. boys! oh. boysF' and that Alma
Bell exclaimed "Goodby joe" Accord
ing to the story of the sheriff. the girl
admitted the killing and asserted that
she fred the shot because her lover
had thrown her down" She admitted
to the sherif that she had been intimate
with Joe Armes. but denied that she
was in a delicate condition.
Betrayed by Armes
During the trial the defense sought
to prove that Alma Bell was betrayed
under promise of marriage and that it
was to give her child a name that she
sought to compel the fulhllment of the
promise. Experts were also placed on
the stand to testify that under the cir
cumstances the girl had no sense OF
right or wrong when she did the shoot
ing. Alma Bells own story of the
the trial
The trial began the first week in No.
vember and ended at a. M today.
rrNr~r-