Los Angeles herald., 1909-06-05
JOHN w. ALLEN

lass Norwood, book agent, as the man
convicted more than twenty years ago.
but before the prosecution could follow
up it's effort to prove that Allen is a
desperate character Judge Davis ruled
that all the evidence in this connection
must be disregarded by the Jury, owing
to the fact that the Arkansas certificate
was not properly certified.
That the principal purpose for the
creation of the office of deputy con-
stable at Newhall was to enhance the
financial fortunes of the incumbent was
apparent in the early hours of the trial
yesterday, when Aliens attorneys be-
gan the introduction of testimony.
j. r. Powell, a Newhall justice, was
the first witness called. Seventy-one
arrests, he said, had been made by De
Moranville as deputy constable in the
month of December, last year, and of
this number there were sixty-eight
convictions. The expense to the county
totaled $699.25, or $4.15 in each case
where the prisoner was released and
$1010 where a conviction and sentence
to a term in the county Jail resulted.
In each case the Justice received SO for
issuing the complaint, 81 was paid to
the deputy for making the arrest, 10
cents for mileage to the justice court,
$685. for mileage to the county Jail and
50 railroad fare for the officer accom-
panying the prisoner.
Justice Powell said it frequently hap
pened that many of the persons ar
rested were released when it was dis
covered they were supplied with suffi-
cient funds to maintain themselves.
Allen Tells of Shooting
Allen was the first witness in the
afternoon. He was born in Alabama
thirty-nine years ago. he testified and,
relating the story of his movements on
the night De Moranville was killed,
said:
II went to Newhall January from
the Chilo valley, where 1 had been
working. That night about o'clock,
while 1 was on my way to Kellogg's
ranch, some person standing about 800
feet away ordered me to throw up my
hands. AS L turned I slipped on a nail
and fell, and as / struck the ground
a gun flashed. l sprang to my knees
and the gun flashed again and flashed
back. Then l jumped to my feet, and
as the gun flashed once more I fired at
the flash. The man ducked out of
sight. The first shot passed between
my fingers and burned my back.
IT left the track and bent my body,
figuring to shoot at the flash If it
should come again. 1 thought the man
was hiding behind some obstruction.
waited a few seconds to receive his
fire, but everything was quiet. Then 1
walked along the fence some distance
and again took to the railroad"
Allen said he looked upon De Moran
vile as the best friend he had in New
hall.
Conviction in Arkansas
Aliens attorneys, Thompson, Robin
son & Willis, announced that their
case was closed, and Deputy District
Attorney Keyes, in rebuttal, intro
duced a certified copy of an Arkansas
court proceeding signed by the county
clerk of Pulaski county and secured by
s. L. Browne chief of the district at
torney's criminal bureau, in his inves-
tigation into Aliens past life.
The document was not read to the
Jury, being ruled out by the court on
account of improper certification. This
ruling was not made, however, until
after Douglass Norwood, a book agent,
living at $40 Bixel street, identified
Allen as the same person named in the
paper as having been convicted on a
murder charge in Arkansas.
Allen, according to the record shown
to the court, was tried and convicted
in June, 1888, for the killing of Amos
Welchell in a fight which started in
a dance hall at Little Rock month
previously. The night of the killing,
the report says, one of the dancers, a
man named Baur, came upon Allen
while the latter was sharpening a
knife at the rear of the dance hall,
and when asked what he was doing
Allen is said to have replied: I'm go
ing to cut some fle-h tonight"
A few hours later Welchelrs body
was found, slashed in a terrible man
ner.
Allen was not called to the stand to.