The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1912-01-08
~. RIcheson Entitled to Not One
Grain Of Sympathy or Atom Of
LenIency According to
PeiletIer.
IS ABSOLUTELY CALLOUS
Brutal. Premeditated Murder With No
Extenuating Circumstances and
Death Should Be Only
Penalty.

United Press Leased Wire Service.]
BOSTON, Mass. Jan. S.--That de-
sire to save his life and nor to atone
for the foul murder of Avis Linnell,
actuated the Rev. Clarence v T. Rich
eson in confessiong that he gave the
unsuspecting girl deadly cyanide Of
potassium, after telling her 1t was a
medicine that would permit her once
again to hold UP her head with her
associates, Will be the contention Of
District Attorney Pelletier. when the
minister is arraigned before Judge
Sanderson late this afternoon.
At that time the former plea Of not
guilty will be withdrawn, and plea
Of murder in the first degre will be
entered by the attorneys for the ac-
cused. Sentence Of death was this
morning expected to be imposed i'm
mediately. although the court made 1t
very plain that, SO far as he was con-
cerned. this was a matter that he was
giving the gravest consideration to.
and he might decide to defer 1t at the
last moment or until later In the week.
The state will demand death II
will insist that there is absolutely no
extenuation Of the offense charged,
and that oriv the electric chair is the
adequate penalty for the crime
In order TO make this contention
very plain, District Attorney Pelsetier
has let it be known that William
Hahn, the druggist who sold the dead
y poison to the minister, only did so
after the latter had insisted that he
wanted to end the misery of female
dog who is about to have puppies, and
whose whining shows she is suffering
very greatly. This statement. the dis
trict attorney insists, absolutely
proves that Richeson had contemplate
ed his fearful crime for many days
and that he was absolutely callous in
the matter
The fact that he was about to MUIR
DER the mother of his unborn child
meant nothing to him. All he want
Cd was to get her out of the way, ac-
cordlng to the states attorney so that
ne might be free to wed the heiress
OF Brookline, Miss Violet Edmands
Because Of this District Attorney Pei
letter felt bitterly against the prison
er today and was assembling his evi.
dence SO that If the court desired he
might prove the circumstances of the
AFFAIR and show that it was most bru-
lal' premeditated, and that there was
absolutely no extenuating circum
stances.
Discussing this point the district
attorney said today:
When man engages himself to al
innocent girl from country village
lhalices her to take the step which
ihaidenhood takes with a reluctanc,
uncomfortable save by love and ex
pectancy of marriage, when that mar
carries his duplicity to the point o
netrothal to another, and then delib
efately compounds poison and ask
.he girl he has betrayed to take 1t fo
rove OF him, excavations are absent
While the prosecutor refused to dis
euss the case in detail, he made /
uear to those who. talked with hin
mat there was no doubt Of the rea
SONS that impelled the minister, no
aione to mutilate himself, but to final
y confess his terrible crime That rea
son was a realization of the stron
ne9 OIL facts with which the state ha,
oeeh able to surround him.
witness after witness, whom he ha
susgested to the attorneys for tn
ueiense was examined and dismisse
tneir stories being absolutely use
.sss % save the accused minister fror
sae ueath chair, His lawyers worke
naru bnt even when the minister sug
ses.ed that Miss Bdmands, his fiancee
misht be able to establish an alibi 10
a',,' they held out little hope. and in
.essigation showed that her story {
sae iast visit paid to her before Rich
'on arrest made the case worse in
stead of better.
flnally the lawyers had to adm
a saal they did not have a single vii
asss whose story would upset th
'trOng chain xu1ya,, ~. a.