Palestine daily herald. [volume] (Palestine, Tex.) 1902-1949, 1909-05-28
MACK GOSsETT TRIAL
Will Probably Be Concluded Today.
Criminal District Court Room
Was Packed Thursday.
From Galveston News, Nav Is:

From Galveston News, May 2S:
Had the criminal district court
room been twice as large as the spa
cious quarters are, it would not have
sufficed to hold the great crowd that
packed it yesterday for the third day
of the trial of Mack Gossett, charged
with murder in the first degree. Even
standing room was at premium.
At S:15 o'clock District Attorney
Love resumed his argument against
the motion for dismissal presented on
Wednesday afternoon by Judge Green,
wood of counsel for the defense. AT
9 o'clock Mr.. Love closed, the an.
swer then being taken up by Judge
Greenwood with the reading of au,
thorities. During this argument a
dispute arose between Mr.. Love and
Judge Greenwood as to the interpre,
tation of authorities, and in which the
court took a hand, the authority be-
ing again consulted to settle the
same.
The summing up of the authorities
presented by the defense is the ale
CATION that the state has not estab-
lished the corpus deficit. AS previous
ly outlined the statutes require that
the corpus deficit be proved; that the
body of deceased must be proved, and
the defendant must be directly con-
nected with the death of deceased.
Contentious of Defense.
The defense contended and based
its motion for dismissal on the fact
that the state had not connected Mack
Gossett with the death of the babies;
that the state took him from st.
Mary's Infirmarly with wife and two
bundles, said by the nuns to have
been babies; that it put him in the
Atlanta Hotel Annex, twenty-five
blocks distant, and left him there
with his wife and two bundles, which
witness Simmons was not sure con-
tanned the children. The defense
here alleged that the state left Cos
sett and does not even show how he
arrived in Palestine, the next place
the evidence shows him. In speaking
of the children defense does not deny
their birth, "but we do deny that the
bodies found are those of the Gossett
twins, and we do deny, their death"
Judge Greenwood reviewed the evil
dence presented by the state and chal-
lenged evidence alleging to show the
identity of the babies born to Sudie
Gossett and the babies found to be
identical. The fact that the physician
who officiated at the birth, and the
nurse who attended the mother and
washed the babies, failed to identify
the dead bodies also made strong
point.
Judge Greenwood closed with, 81 re-
peat for the last time, the state must
show the Gossett twins are dead that
they met death by drowning, and that
the boy who sits there put them in
the canal. Has it shown it? If not,
it is your duty to so instruct the jury.
Your honor, thank you
Judge Greenwood overruled.
At the conclusion of the argument
Judge Campbell promptly announced
the motion oYerruled. Before bring
ing in the jury the defense submitted
motion to require the state to elect
in this case under which count in the
Indictment it shall insist upon a con-
viction, for the. following reasons:
First, because the two counts in the
indictment are contradictory, the first
count alleging that deceased came to
their death by drowning, and the
second count alleging that the de-
ceased came to their death by an in
strument or instruments in some man.
ner and by some means to the grand
jury unknown.
Second, because the defendant is en-
titled to know upon which count the
state will rely for conviction in or
der that he can properly meet same,
and in order that he can plead same
against another prosecution.
The motions were overruled and the
defendant entered an exception.
Motions Submitted.
Judge Greenwood now move that
this court require the state to elect
in this case which child we are on
trial for killing and call the courts
attention to the fact that there is no
description in the indictment other
than an infant child of Sudie Gosssett.
The evidence shows two children and
| now move the court to require the
state to elect which child he is now
on trial for killing.
District Attorney Love-The state
now elects to try the defendant in
this case and limit the testimony and
the charge in this case to the offense
of murder of the child shown by the
evidence to have been found n the
canal on the 22d day of January, 1909
the first child found in the canal.