Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1912-01-30
Albert Wolter Writes Statement Of
Innocence Before Exc
cution.
CONVICTION ON CIRCUMSTANCES
Crime Of Girls Abuse and Muir
der is Most Revolt
ing.

e ---.
Ossining, N. r., Jan. 30.--Albert
Wolter was put to death in the cleo
trio chair at Sing Sing prison at
I:41 o'clock yesterday morning for
the murder Of 15-year-old- Ruth
Wheeler nearly two years ago.
The girl came to VOTERS fat in
New York in search Of employment
and he killed her after she had been
mistreated. Wolter left a state
ment with Warden Kennedy deny
ing that he had committed the
crime.
The execution was without feat
ure and Wolter was declared dead
after one contact with 1850 volts.
The state electrician said that VOL
ter showed less resistance to the
electric current than any murderer
put to death by electricity at Sing
Sing prison.
The murderer spent Sunday night
quietly, resting only part of the
time. At 2 o'clock yesterday morn
ing Wolter wrote his denial of the
killing. It was on a single sheet
and 50 even and clear were the let
ters formed that the writing had the
appearance Of copper plates. The
statement reads:
Warden ]. S. Kennedy: To be
given to the, public. Jan. 20, q a.
M: Now that I am departing from
this earth to go into the presence Of
God. wish to make this last state
ment: The world refused me jus
tice but our Father in heaven who
knows our innermost thoughts will
give me pure and undefiled justice.
! wish to state am innocent of the
crime was convicted of. l have
been victim Of circumstantial evil
dence. / hope that there may come
time when the conscience Of the
perpetrator win overpower him and
he will come to the front and ack-
nowledge his guilt. It is my honest
prayer to God that he may bring
the person guilty of the crime to
Justice. that my name may be clear
ed OF this stain and that the people
may see the injustice done me and
that they killed an innocent boy. To
those who have given me their kind
assistance and have trusted in me,
give my sincere thanks. To those
who have maliciously prosecuted and
killed me, for them l pray Gods for
giyeness.
Although Wolter was convicted
on circumstantial evidence the
court of appeals. reviewing the case
after series of legal delays, declar-
ed he was fairly tried and Justly
convicted.
Ruth Wheeler met her death on
March "a, 1910, in VOTERS apart
ment on the fourth floor OF house
on East Seventy-fifth street, New
York City, where she had gone to
seek employment as stenographer
Her charred body was discovered
subsequently.
The evidence indicated that the
girl had come to her death by stran-
gulation and burning after having
been ravished. The body had been
thrust into fireplace, where it was
partly burned and concealed until
1t became convenient to remove it in
a bag to the fire escape, from which
1t was thrown to the ground below.
Wolter admitted that he wrote
the postal card which led Ruth
Wheeler to visit his apartment, and
in book kept by him was found in
her handwriting an entry Of her
name and address. A hat pin and a
ring, which the girl had worn on
the morning of her disappearance,
were found in the fireplace, and in
a house to which Wolter had moved
on the following day was found an
umbrella, which the girl was said
to have had with her when she left
home.