The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1912-10-25
BECKER GUILTY OF
FIRST DEGREE
MURDER
Jury Came in With Verdict at
Midnight
SENTENCED ON WEDNESDAY
Wife of Police Lieutenant Swoons
When Fate of Her Husband Is
Announced.

New York, Oct. 25.-Police Lieut.
Charles Becker was found guilty last
night of murder in the first degree by
the jury which has been trying him
for instigating the death of Herman
Rosenthal, the gambler. Mrs. Becker
sitting outside the door of the court
room, fell in a swoon when the yer
dict was announced. The verdict was
murder in the first degree and was
pronounced exactly at midnight Beck
err was remanded for sentence to the
T0ombs by Justice Golf until Wed
nesday. Becker did not finch when
he heard the verdict pronounced by
Harold B. Skinner, foreman of the
jury. John f. Mcintyre, Beckers
chief counsel, announced that he
would take an immediate appeal, but
added beyond this he had nothing to
say.
The IL jurors, with solemn faces
and measured steps, filed into the
courtroom at 11:55 o'clock. min
ute later the defendant was brought
in from the Toombs. Justice Con had
not yet entered the room and for a
moment Becker took side seat. As
he waited, he scanned with anxious
eve the faces of the jurors, but none
of them returned his gaze. A tense
silence prevailed. At 1857 o'clock
Justice Goff entered the courtroom
and. bowling low to counsel, took his
seat. The jury roll was called. The
Clerk then asked the jurors If they
had reached a verdict.
1--WE have" announced Foreman
Skinner. The jury rose to its feet,
I'VE find the defendant guilty as
charged in the indictment" Mr.. Skin
ner said slowly and evenly, looking
squarely at Justice Con.
do you find the defendant guilty
of murder in the first degree, as
charged in the Indictment" asked
the clerk.
1--WE do" the foreman replied.
The prisoners destiny was deliver
ed into the jury's hands at 2;20
O'Clock yesterday afternoon after a
three-hour charge by Justice Goff,
which Becker characterized as dis
tinctly unfair and "a thin-veiled sum
ming up for the state" and upon
which his counsel, John F. Mcintyre,
declined to comment. To do so, he
said, would place him in contempt OF
court. Twice during the afternoon
the jury communicated with Justice
Golf. Once it asked for the stipula-
tons made by the state with the four
informers, Rose, Weber. Vallon and
Schepps, and Schepps's letter to Rose,
written by the little gambler at Hot
Springs, Ark. and expressing his will
ingness to testify. The second time
the Jury wanted the testimony of per-
sons who talked with Schepps in Hot
Springs. The first request was grant
ed: the second denied, because por'
tons of testimony taken at Hot
Springs had been excluded from the
evidence by the court.
charge, apparently was much in the
jurys mind. After waiting four hours
for a verdict, Justice Goff went home
for dinner. He left word that he
would return at 10 O'Clock unless he
should be wanted by the jury in the
meantime. Before leaving Justice
Goff instructed court attendants to
take the jury to dinner when its men,
bers signified they wanted TO go.
Justice Goff concluded his charge at
1:50 o'clock. having consumed three
hours and 10 minutes in its delivery.
Before Becker's fate was delivered to
the jury Mr. Mcintyre excepted to the
courts refusal to charge. on his re-
quest that Sam Schepps be designat-
ed as an accomplice. Upon Mr. Nc
Intyre's motion, Justice Goff, how
ever, added a final word of warning to
the jury that IL must be individually
convinced of the defendants guilt or
acquit him. But you must not con-
fuse doubt with stubbornness," the
court said The two are widely diff
fernt" Mr.. Mcintyre excepted to
the court including in its charge a
brief skeleton Of the states case"
Becker's counsel devoted 80 min
utes to stating his exceptions to the
courts charge Justice Goff granted
Mr.. Mclntyre's motion that the jury
be advised to give the same weight TO
testimony Of Witnesses examined at
Hot Springs, Ark, as to witnesses ex-
amined at New York. The jury retir-
ed at 2:20 and were allowed until $50
for lunch, which they took at an W
town hotel AS Becker was being led
away to the Toombs he said. That
was not a charge to the jury. 1t was
a thin-veiled cumming up Of the case
for the prosecution. 1t was absolute
" partial There was no justice in it.
The court was simply directing the