The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1906-2016, 1912-03-27
4 MISTR|AL IN
Ne v ORLEANS
MURDER CASE
AFTER FIFTEEN HOURS JURY RE.
PORTS FAILURE IN ANNIE
CRAWFORD CASE.
Nine Stood for AcquittaI and Three
for Conviction With Capital Pun
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS May Never Be
Brought to Trial Again.

New Orleans, March 26-The SEN
satio1al trial Of Annie Crawford for
the alleged murder of her sister, Elsie
Crawford, resulted in a mistrial
At 10.40 this morning the jurors,
after being out since 11.15 o'clock last
night, reported to Judge Chretien of
the criminal district court that they
were unable to agree on a verdict,
and We're discharged
The jury stood 8 to for acquit.
tai, the minority holding out for a
verdict of murder with capital pun
ishment.
The result was not unexpected by
either the prosecution attorneys OF
counsel for the defense. Miss Craw-
ford probably, will be released on bail
this week, and it is doubtful if an
effort will be made to bring her to
trial for the alleged crime a second
time.
To the majority of the vast throne
which followed the proceedings of the
trial for the two weeks, the black
garbed, veiled, Unconditional little
woman still is an enigma.
Defendant Was Morphine Eater.
Confessedly morphine eater for a
period of six years, Annie Crawford
was absolutely deprived of this drug
from the date of her Incarceration
September 26th last, four DAYS after
her sisters mysterious death, and
without any stimulant she sat through
the most dramatic scenes Of the Ions
trial with an immobile countenance
Even when the heart Of the sister
whom she is charged with numbering
was exhibited to the jury, she gave
no hint of any inward emotion. She
watched the medical experts carve
slices from the spleen of Elsie and
handle the brain of her dead sister
without the constant gaze Of the spec
tators and court officials being able
to fathom her feelings.
Elsie Crawford's S death was Just one
of four sudden and mysterious deaths
in The Crawford family within q
space of fifteen months. The bodies
of the father, mother and another
sister, Mary Agnes, has recomposet
long before any suspicion had attached
to Annie. The experts told District
Attorney Adams there were no means
of verification of his suspicious that
the first three to die had been victims
of poison. The contemplated autop-
sizes were abandoned; the cause OF
their demise remains as a part of the
complex mystery involved in this
case.
Proved Elsie Died Of Poison.
The state proved that Elsie Craw-
ford who died September %, 1911,
was the victim Of morphine poison
ing.
A partial analysis of the stomach
Of the dead girl by City Chemist A.
]. Metz, showed az grains of crystal
lied morphine. In statement made
to District Attorney st. Clair-Adams,
September 9th, Annie Crawford ad-
mitted she had given Elsie 3lA grains
of ,norphine few hours before she
died. She asserted she did this by
mistake, having intended to give her
sister calomel and soda. On the wit
ness stand the defendant qualified this
admission by saying 1T is possible, .
she gave Elsie the morphine, but she
had DO recollection Of doing so.
The state offered possible motion
that Annie Crawford wanted the in
sura1ce money on Elsie's life. The
total sum, however, was less than
5000. and Of this the terms OF the pol
icy gave Annie, as one Of the bene-
ficiafies, less than $50.
The defense offered the suicide the
ory and supported it with the defend
ants statement that Elsie had been
despondent at times since she gave
birth to a child six years ago; that
Elsie was addicted also to the NOR
phine habit, and that just before her
death Elsie had apparently worried
about a love affair.