The Waxahachie daily light. [volume] (Waxahachie, Tex.) 1894-current, 1912-02-27
|BURRELL OATES CASE
BEFORE HIGH COURT
FAMOUS MURDER CASE TO BE
GIVEN A HEARING TOMoR-
ROW FOR FIFTH TIME.
County Attorney Pippen Will Leave
For Austin Tonight to Repre-
sent the State.-EarIy De-
cision Expected.

early uecLSlon III Inc Burrell Gate
case is Indicated by the fact tina
the record has been filed with thu
court Of criminal appeals at Austin
and the hearing of its submission or
oral argument will take place before
that tribunal tomorrow.
County Attorney Pippen will
leave for Austin tonight to repre-
sent the state and present argument
to show that the appellant had d
fair and impartial trial Attorne,
A. s. Basket of Dallas will appear
for the defendant.
With the submission OF this case
tomorrow the court of criminal ap-
pealss, of Texas will be called upon
the fifth time to determine wheth-
er or not any technical errors were
committed in the trial of one of the
most noted criminal cases that has
ever engaged the consideration of
"a tribunal Of Justice In this coun-
try
rell Oates, yellow negro, who has
had seven trials and convictions on
q charge of murder and against
whom the death penalty has been
assessed six times. Eighty-four men,
good and true, have decreed by
their verdict that Oates was guilty
of murder in the first degree and
eighty-three of these have declar-
ed that he deserved to be hanged.
The case against Oates originated
at Dallas, where he was given five
trials. The four first trials resulted
In yerdicts Of guilty and in each
the death sentence was imposed. In
the fifth trial the jury voted that
he was guilty of murder in. the first
degree, but when ballot was TAX
en- on the penalty to be assessed
there were eleven jurors who want
ed to send him to the gallows and
one who held out that a life term In
| the penitentiary was adequate to
serve the ends OF justice. A mistria,
resulted and the case was passed
over until the subsequent term o
court. When the case was called q
dallas for the sixth time the atto1
Iney TOR Oates presented a motto
asking for change of venue, settin
forth the fact that on account {
! prejudice against the defendant /
that county he could not secure
/ fair and impartial trial. The motion
was granted and the case was trans
ferred to the fortieth judicial dis
4 trict court of Ellis county. The case
was tried here last spring and after
| the jury had deliberated more thar
| forty-eight hours another verdict Of
/ guilty was returned and the death
penalty assessed. Although Oates
was tried under m Indictment by
which he could only be convicted OF
murder in the first degree or ac-
quilted the jury in this trial failed
to specify the degree Of the crime in
Its verdict and the serror, although a
technical one, was not discovered
until the jury had been discharged.
Because of this fact the de-
PENDANTS motion for new
trial was not contested by the pros
ecuting attorney and the application
was granted by the court. AS the
end of the term was near the case
| could not be reset for trial and con-
sequently went over until the Sep
TENDER term of court. He was tried
| for the seventh time last October
| and for the seventh time verdict
of guilty of murder in the first de-
| gree was returned by twelve citi-
4 zens of Ellis county and for the
/ sixth time the death penalty was
assessed. In this trial the jury was
nearly three days agreeing upon a
verdict. A motion for new trial
was filed in regular order and after
4 the presentation Of argument 1t
4 was oyerruled by the court. Notice
of appeal was given and the trans
cript was a few weeks ago sent to
the clerk of the court of criminal
appeals. The courts decision will be
awaited with great deal of eager
ness both by attorneys and by lay
men who have been keeping up with
the progress of a case that has at
tracted national attention.
During the last trial District
Judge Hawkins and County Attor-
ney Pippen used extreme caution In
conducting the case, and it is now
! believed the record has gone to the
hiehar enurt entirely free from err