Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1910-06-10
GIVEN LIFE TERMS
Governor Mann's Review of the Cases of
johnson, Pines and Dorsey.

or Mann at noon yesterday committed
the sentence of Richard Pines, Eugene
Dorsey and Calvin Johnson, Alexandria
negroes convicted of killing Walter
Schultz, and sentenced to be electrocut-
ed this Friday, morning.
The negroes will spend the remainder
of their lives in the penitentlary.
In committing the sentence Of the
trio, all of whom were implicated IN
the murder OF the Chicago artist by
Henry Smith, who died in the cleo
trio chair last Friday for his partlci-
patton in the crime, Governor Mann
issued statement covering two pages
of typewriting in which he reviewed
the testimony of Smith, confessed
perjurer, and said he had received a
petition from 291 persons and several
Jurors asking that the negroes be not
electrocuted because of the doubt OF
their guilt.
The governors statement follows
THE cases of Johnson, Pines and
DORSEY. three negroes convicted OF the
killing of Walter F, Schultz in Alex
andria. on the sixth Of March, 1909,
and who are now in the pcnltentlary
lawaiting the execution OF the sentence
against them, are exciting the greatest
interest in Alexandria as Is evidenced
by petitions signed by two hundred
and ninety-one persons asking Tor
communication of the sentence OF Cal
vim Johnson, petitions signed by two
hundred and ffty-four persons asking
for Communication of the sentence OF
Dorsey, Pines and Johnson, which in
cludes petition signed by thirteen
LAWYERS of Alexandria, Alexandria
county and Fairfax, which is here
inserted: The undersigned members
OF the bar of the Sixteenth judiciary
circuit respectfully petition for the
communication of the death sentences
of the three negroes, Johnson, Pines
and Dorsey, convicted OF the murder
of w. +. Schultz chiefly upon the
testimony Of the negro convict, Henry
Smith. who has since their trials de-
clared that all of the testimony given
against the other men was perjury. IL
is the unanimous belief OF this COM
munity, as far as we know 1t, that
Smith has proven himself to be I'M
worthy ofcredit We think 1t would
he dangerous to take the lives OF
three other men upon his evidence;
and petitions signed by six hundred
and fifteen persons asking for the par
don of Dorsey, Pines and johnson.
Three of the jurors trying Johnson ask
for communication of his sentence, and
one of them asks for his pardon in the
following letter:
Besides Johnson, Dorsey and Pines,
Henry Smith was charged with the
murder of Schultz, and three days after
his arrest, which occurred on the
twelfth of March, he confessed his
crime and implicated. Johnson, Dorsey
and Pines, who. he said, compelled hun
to go with them and assist in carrying
Schultz to the place where he is said to
have been murdered. Smith was proved
to have been twice sent to the peniten-
tiarv. but having served his time was a
competent witness, and also entirely
upon his evidence Dorsey. johnson
and Pines were convicted. After their
conviction the case against Smith was
continued from time to time, and Gov
crnor Swanson granted repricves to the
convicted men until the case against
Smith should be tried. Smith when
tried was convicted, and made a
motion for Il new trial, but pending
the action Of the court, as | am inform
ed, he dismissed his motion, asked TO be
sentenced and sent to Richmond, and
declared that his testimony against Dor
sew, Johnson and Pines was false and
that they were innocent of the crime;
that he had never seen Schultz to know
him and was himself innocent Of the
crime. After the withdrawal of Smith s
motion for new trial the Judge OF the
court sentenced him and in doing so de-
clared that he was perjurer as well as
a murderer. | quote his language:
The crime itself was revolving and hor-
rible in its details, but to this you have
added perjury. and from your recent
statement have shown that you carry
within YOU a heart as hard and rs sinful
and as black rs the crime itself which
YOU have committed. for which | am
about to sentence you After the con-
vic,ion of Dorsey, Johnson, aud Pines,
and before the second statement OF
Smith generating them, Johnson by
his counsel had the evidence certified
and applied to the supreme court OF ap-
peals for writ Of error and supersedeas,
which was refused
Various atidavits have been filed
from witnesses not examined at the
trial; applications for clemency have
been made, and | have gone over the
cases with the greatest care, first, for
the purpose of ascertainlng If the EVIL
dence relied on to corroborate the evil
dcncc first given by Smith under any
circumstances would Justify jury in
finding the prisoners guilty in the face
of Smiths denial of that testimony
made since the verdicts in the three
cases now being considered were render
ed And in going over the evidence |
find the greatest doubt as TO the time
and place of the murder. Schultz
weighed between 160 and $50 pounds,
and tile undertaken said that there was
no blood in his veins when he took
charge of the body, his jugular vein
having been twice cut by the murderer;
hat he must have lost gallon and a half
of blood. and vet the evidence shows