The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1910-01-19
Want to Make Sure No Legal
Hangings Will Ever 0c-
cur in the State.
FIFTY UNDER SENTENCE
THIS NUMBER or CONDEMNED
MEN NOW IN STATE PRISON Al
THOUGH HAS BEEN NO HANG
ING IN 20 YEARS.

IOp6kd, h6H., Jan. IS.-rlIty men
under sentence Of death are now con-
fined In the state penitentiary. Kan
sas has not had legal hanging in
forty years, although 1t has been only
two years since capital punishment
was abolished. The men sentenced
to the gallows escaped by reason of
the fact that the law requires the
governor to sign the death warrant
and set the date for its execution. No
governor would ever take the full re-
sponsibility and SO the death sentence
came to mean life imprisonment.
Although capital punishment has
been abolished there is nothing to
prevent governor signing death
warrant in the cases of those sentenc-
ed under the old law or sentenced
since the new law. but for crimes
committed when the old law was in
effect.
Are to Petition.
Now the women of Kansas, fearing
that by some unhappy chance there
may be q governor who will sign the
death warrants in these cases in
which capital punishment is possible,
propose to petition the Kansas legisla-
ture to pass some sort of law that
will prevent any legal hanging in the
state hereafter. Lawyers are not
agreed as to whether such law
would be legal. as the constitution.
prohibits the passage of ex post facto
laws. The women, however. argue
that they want the law anyway, as it's
influence would be good whether the
law was good or not. The fact that
there was a law prohibiting it would
probably deter any governor signing
u death warrant, and there is not the
slightest possibility Of the law ever
being brought up to the courts for de-
cision.
Several years ago there was a mu-
tiny In the prison. and some of the
death prisoners helped in subduing
the mutineers. For this some were
pardoncd and others were favored by
having their sentences committed.
Storm Of Protest.
Whenever there has been talk of a
governor signing a death warrant
there always has been a storm of pro-
test from all sections OF the state. A
governor who would sign the death
warrants probably would be ostraciz-
cd.
One woman Is now in the peniten-
tiary under moral sentence OF death
Mrs. Mollie Stewart, sentenced in
1907. The men under sentence and
the year Of their Incarceration are as
follows:
Charles Burnside, 1890; B. F. Nc
Lean. 1892: Wilbur Norton, 1898:
Morgan Wright, 1898: Joseph Walk
er, 1894: Jap Rainey, 1894: Edward
Anderson. 1896: Marion Ashell, 1896;
Rudolph buchanan. 1897: George Stat
flebach. 1897; g. w. Finch, 1898;
Isaac Warren, 1898: John Dodd. 1898;
John Moore. No. 2. 1899; Thomas
Green. 1899: James Render. real name
unknown. 1899; Richard Williams,
1899; Glenn Darnell, 1899; Marcus
Darnell. 1899: Amos Phillip, 1900;
John Kornstett, 1900; John Beilstein,
1900: Douglas Reinier, 1900; James
Harris, 1901; Frank ]. Barnes, 1901:
Joseph Davis. 1901; James B. Shane,
1902: Andrew Peterson, 1902; James
Anderson, 1902: James s. Dalton,
1902: Fred Falkenburg. 1902; Thorn
ton Brant, 1903: Theo. McKim, 1908;
William A. Mason. 1908: Ike johnson.
1904: F. T. Appleton, 1904: Howard
Hale. 1904: william c. Mccoy, 1904;
Louis Gregory. 1904: Mark NJ New
ton. 1904.