Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1910-11-06
ACQU|T7AL FOR
 PEARL JOHNSON Generally Believed That Jury Reached "Not Gull ty" Verdict Last Night
TO BE OPENED MONDAY
Judge Grace Held Jury Together Second Trial of Murder Case
 in Local Court.

The jury in the Pearl Johnson murder case. after being out for twelve hours, last night reached q verdict, put it in writing, sealed it and it will be presented to Judge A. B. Grace ill the Jefferson circuit court Monday morning to be opened and announced. It is generally be- intimated by some who studied the faces of the jurors as they passed out of the jury room, that a verdict of mot guilty was reached. None of the jurors discussed their verdict, but it is safe to say that an acquittal was the result of the second trial of the alleged negro murderess. Judge Grace is said to have stated that he would not discharge the jury until they reached a verdict. Shortly before the midnight hour arrived last night, when Deputy Sheriff R. H. Williams was preparing to take the jurors to their rooms for the night, | it was announced that the jury had agreed.
 Was Second Trial.
 The case was tried once before Tn the circuit court and resulted in a mistrial. It has cost the county thous- ands of dollars and in trying to bring the jurors to a realization that a ver- diet meant the saving of another trial and much additional expense, Judge Grace held them together
 All the evidence in the case was submitted at the adjournment of court Friday afternoon, after the at torneyS in the case, Prosecuting At torney T. Hays Nixon and Attorneys H. K. Toney and s. J. Hunt, who rep thesens the defendant. had broken previous murder case records by se- lecting a jury in less than an hour and using only four and half hours in disposing of the large number of witnesses. They required only two hours and half yesterday morning to argue it and the rapidty in which they handled the case throughout met the approval of the court. An interesting feature of the trial was the revelation made by at least forty per cent of the jurors called and ayamipad in that thav Waro mt in favor of capital punishment. Out of thirty-nme prospective jurors brought into the court room by Sher if Edgar Brewster fifteen of them disqualified themselves on the ground that they would not inflict capital even if the law and evidence war by the court after that admission. This is only a small sample Of the sentiment that exists among the best citizens of this and other communit- :es at the present time. when cap!- tai punishment Is to be considered. The fifteen men who disqualified SACHSClfco dIc dulOu6 tuC DcoI SAe-- dens in this county.
 The Crime.
 Pearl Johnson was indicted for murder in the first degree, being charged with the assassination of Geneva Pope, another young negress, who was killed while walking along a country road two miles west of Pine Bluff last May. The crime was committed in broad dayl ight and the woman's body was buried in leaves ;n the woods nesr the scene of the tragedy. Several negroes were arr rested. but they were released. Con- stable Frank Stewart finally arrested Pearl Johnson and her paramour, Le- roy Pope, brother-in-law of the dead woman. Pope made a confession and repeated the story on the wit mesa stand. He said Pearl Johnson, shot the Pope woman from the back; that he carried the gun to her in the woods to commit the crime and help ed her to drag the body from the road and h:de it. Pope was also indict es an accessory. He is in the coun- ty iail