The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-05-05
MORRIS SAID HE
KILLED SANDAL
Murderer Left Interesting Let
ter to the State Board
of Pardons.
STORY is NOT BELIEVED
Number of Discrepancies Are
Noted in the Murderer's
"Confession."
STORY is NOT BELIEVED

Nick Haworth, who already has
served thirteen years IN the state
prison. following conviction and sen
teuce to life Imprisonment for the muir
der of Thomas Sandal, night watch
man at Layton, in 1899, is not guilty
of the crime for which he is suffering,
if the confession Of j. J. Morris made
lust before he mounted the scahold
last Tuesday, Is true. Morris wrote a
full confession to the Layton murder
and handed to his attorney, Cari Bad
ger, the morning he was hanged Ihe
confession, in the form Of letter ia
the state board of pardons, was hand
ed TO Governor William Spry by At
torney Badger yesterday.
Letter to the Board.
The board OF pardons will consider
| the matter at meeting to be helo
| early this week Tho letter, writer
bv Morris at the hour Of his death, /!
as follows:
| To the Governor and Board of Par
Gentlemen. sirs-I leave this letter
| In order that the truth may be known
| and in my last statement Oh this
| earth may do justice TO an innocent
man that is confined here doing life
sentence for a crime that was com
mtted by me. do not know this
mai but do know know tbat that h. he IL is onS mo.
fined here for. That man Is Nick
| Haworth.
/ left Ogden on the afternoon OF
| March 20, 1899; took Il double barreed
shotgun from a sheep. wagon about
five miles south OF Ogden, then wont
TO Layton. Utah. That night l broke
| was about 1890 o'clock. I entered
| through the coal hole on the north
side OF the building. After I got into
| the store | was encountered ny q man,
which afterwards 1 learned was the
night watchman. by the name OF
| Thomas Sandle.
Tells of Killing.
TIe tried TO interfere with NE, and
the shotgun both ~ barrels were Ser as
| ter looking at him I saw tho side
Of his head was almost missing. |
searched him and took purse and
revolver nom his person, and touched
| nothing else I left the Btore the same
way ] entered. by the coal hole.
This building was located on the
After leaving the store ] went ulong
the wagon road and stopped at a hay
| stack on the way About one-fourth
O milo from Layton there ! LEFT
| my way
Now. sirs. if you will take the time
to investigate this 1 am certain you
| Will find 1t is the truth, 1 ain very
J. ]. MORRIS.
Although the authorities are incline
to doubt the confession, no step VII
be left untaken to determine It's trut
OF falsity. Sheriff Sharp has sent ou
photographs and records of Morris t.
many prisons throughout the countT
| In an attempt to learn whether or no
he was at liberty at the time Of til
Sandal murder.
The known record of Morris show
that he was released from the stat
prison Of Colorado in 1898 and did no
come again into the hands of the lay
until 1901, when he was sent to tn
| Montana state prison for highway rob
berry.
Discrepancies Noted.
There are many important discrep
ancies IN Morris . confession as com
pared to the facts in the murder
Whereas he wrote that he murderer
Sandal March %, 1899, the record
show that the murder was committee
| March %. His statement that he tool
| Sandall's purse also is disproven b.
| the record, which shows that ouly tn
murdered man IS keys and revolve
| were taken. The record showed, too
| that the murderer left the store b,
| forcing the back door, while Morris
| claimed he left by the coal chute
! through which he entered. The murde
was committed in the Farmers UnioI
store. Morris said ne killed Sandal il
the Brick Mercantile store.
Nick Haworth was arrested in Ore
eon several months after the crime
He is said TO have made confession
but later repudiated it, claiming h
was forced to make it because o.
third degree methods adopted BY
the Davis county sheriff At the tria
it was shown that he had been in tn,
vicinity of the murder, travclins
through with a band of wanderinl
gvpsies. In August 1900. Hawortl
was found guilty of murder in the frs
degree and was sentenced TO be shot
a new trial was granted by the su
prems court, but it resulted in the
same verdict. The supreme court re
fused TO interfere again and the case
was laid before the board of pardon.
with the result that the death sentence
was commuted to life Imprisonment.
According to the prison authorities
j, j. Morris and Haworth never asso
ciated with ench other at the state
PRISON: though it is said that it would
nave been au easy matter for Morris
TO have arranged with Haworth to con.