Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1911-09-20
KENNEDY MUST ANSWER TO CHARGE
OF MURDER IN LEE SUPERIOR COURT

/ ing of seventeen dollars to the detec-
5 tive by his brother as having been
: made necessary on account of his car
breaking down at Adams Station, while
he and the detective were returning
| to Smithville. Petri, the detective, ac-
cording to the witness, caught the next
train for Smithyille, where he asked
: Maud Childers for some money in ac-
cOrdance with the instructions of So
licitor Childers, who was detained at
: Adams with his car.
= On the occasion when he talked to
i Kennedy at Carrolton, the witness
said Kennedy had told him Of Mrs.
Childers' having taken the medicine
and had then denied it. Kennedy also
told himy he said, that he was not at
wor \ in Carrolton, but merely there on
| ? pleasure trip.
Z. 7. Petri, the private detective who
vas secured by Solicitor Childers to
ferret out the facts in the case upon
its merits, was the next witness. Petri
was badly confused by the fierce eXaul-
ination directed at him, especially to-
ward the close of his testimony.
He told of his having been secured
| by Solicitor Childers, who, he said,
informed him that several persons
were suspected CT the crime, among
whom was the solicitors brother. Ken
nedy's father had talked freely before
him about the case, having cursed
Maud Childers and having said that he
was responsible for the murder of his
daughter.
There's where that sweet woman
lies and that low down with an OATH
Maud Childers ought to be hung for it, )"
Kennedy senior is reported by Petri
to have remarked, while the two were
near the cemetery at Smithville, taking
walk one afternoon.
Petri then told of having left Smith
vile and having gone to Leesburg,
thence to Dawson and return, as Chill
ders is said to have done on the day
his wife was poisoned. He said he
inquired of various persons in each
place who knew Childers and asked
them if he appeared at all worried on
that day, such as he would naturally
have been expected to appear had he
poisoned his wife. Each one told him,
he said, that Childers seemed perfect
ly natural and normal in his manner.
He finally left the Simpson Hotel at
Smithville, he said, after suspicious
occurrences caused him to believe that
an effort was being made to poison
him.
Before he left the stand Petri ad-
mitted that, though he had said to sew
eral persons that he had evidence suf-
fcient to convict Kennedy, he had 10
evidence at all In endeavOring to eX-
plain this he said that he had men
toned it to several persons in order to
gain information from them concern
ing the case. This part of the detec-
tives testimony was very feeble in
deed, and the lawyers for the defense
made the most of it. The
testimony of this witness on the whole
had little about it that was convin1-
ing.
w. A. Garrett, sheriff of Carroll
county, who arrested Kennedy at Car
Irolton, said that when he served the
warrant on Kennedy that the latter re-
marked:
Il was expecting that warrant %
come and for somebody to arrest me
for poisoning Mrs Childers."
Later, according to Sheriff Garrett,
j Kennedy contradicted this statemen1
by saying:
:; 81 didn't poison Mrs. Childers, but
/ know who did it."
81 loved her dearly, too we'll for her
to be the wife of another man, but
there's no use of my telling you that"
} Kennedy is reported by Sheriff Garrett
as having said at another time in dis
! cussing the murder
: 81 could have gotten away, If | had
. wanted" Kennedy remarked to him
: when the warrant came, according to
? Garrett.
) When questioned as to why he did
not notify Sheriff Smith, of Lee. county.
< as soon as he arrested Kennedy. Gar
rett said that Petri told him he had
S wired to Sheriff Smith.
S Burt Lively, another witness from
e Carrolton, put up very weak testimony
t which could not be gotten into any def
. mite shape by the attorneys for the
h defense. Lively said that Kennedy
t seemed to think a great deal of Mrs
a Chi1dnrC HE factiy,pOv ya1.v