Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-01-27
WILLARD NOT FREE
Acquitted of Murder, He Must
Prove Present Sanity.
HE is REMANDED TO JAIL
Application for Inquiry to Be Made
by Counsel-Verdict Better
Than He Hoped.

Although a jury of twelve men, after
nine hours elaboration, acquitted Albert
H. Willard, at 10 o'clock last night, of
the charge of numbering his son-in-law,
Irving w. Beck, on May 6, last, on the
theory that he was insane when he fired
the fatal shots. Willard will be again
called on to prove to another jury that
he has recovered his mental balance and
is now sane.
Application will be at once made by
Attorney Thomas. c. Taylor, his counsel,
for an inquiry by jury into the pres
ent mental status of the prisoner. Will
lard, although acquitted, is still in Gus
tody and will SO remain until his present
mental condition Is established
The code seems to leave the disposition
OF prisoner found not guilty by reason
of insanity to the discretion of the court.
1t provides that he may be incarcerated
in the Government Hospital for the In
sane, but does not require that he should
be.
1T is expected Justice Gould will allow
Willard to remain at the Jail until the
jury of inuuisition shall have passed
upon his case.
Willard Had Not Hoped Acquittal
Il was dazed for a minute when
heard the verdict last night" said Will
lard today to q Star reporter. The long
delay in reaching a verdict had caused
me to look for compromise. When
went into the courtroom last night~l
thought the verdict would be manslaugh-
ter.
LOT course, / am glad the jury &C
quilted me. l tried to tell them last night
how l appreciate it.
II could not get to sleep last night for
a long time thinking about it"
The shadow of the gallows was early
obliterated from the elaboration of the
Jurors. On the second ballot the lone
first degree man Joined the ranks of the
adherentS to verdict of second degree
murder.
On this ballot six men voted for second
degree and six upheld the insanity theory.
This order was unchanged through sew
eral ballots.
After Justice Gould had given addition
al instructions to the jurors. about 4
o clock yesterday afternoon. one by one,
the advocates Of a conviction joined the
ranks the insanity upholders. At $50
o clock the last ballot, which one of the
jurors described as surely the fiftieth."
showed unanimous opinion that the
story OF the wrongs done his child had
dethroned the reason Of Willard and,
therefore. he was not responsible for
the crime.
Willard Hears Verdict.
The fact that the jury had agreed was
telephoned to Justice Gould by Clerk
Hawken. 1t was just 1910 O'Clock when
the jurors filed into the box and an
nounced the verdict Not guilty by rea-
son of insanity"
An attempted demonstration of ap-
prevail on the part of forty or fifty spec
tators was quickly suppressed by Crier
Goodacre.
Willard, after recovering from the
dazed condition into which the good
tidings had thrown him for a minute or
two, arose. Passing over to the jury box,
he shook each juror by the hand and in
a voice choked with emotion thanked
one and all for what he described as a
fair deal"
Assistant United States Attorney Har-
vey Given had asked the court to re-
mand Willard to Jail. The motion being
granted, Willard returned to the custody
of Warden Mckee.
The wife and children Of Willard were
not present when the verdict was rem
dered, as they reside in the country.
Attorney Taylor had advised them to go
home earlier in the evening.