Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1912-10-30
BOGGS AND
WORLY ACCUSED
OF THEFT
TRUE BILL IS NOVEL one
Alleged Property Belonged to
Three Different Persons

Savannah. Ga, Oct. ga novel
criminal proceeding has been begun
in the superior court here. Hugh
Boggs and John Willis Worley, two
young white men from Decatur, Ala
have been indicted for the larceny OF
an automobile that belonged to Jasper
H. Turner, whom they XII led on the
Augusta road fourteen months ago
and of whose murder they have been
acquitted.
When they were tried for the MUIR
der, Boggs and Worley admitted that
they took the automobile, fled to Oil
yer, Ga, and there sold the machine
for $l00 Failing to secure the pun
ishment of the defendants for the
homicide the sol citor general will
prosecute them on the larceny charge
They claimed they acted in Sc f-de-
Tense when they slew Turner, a colorf
ed man.
The prosecuting officer met a new
proposition when he came to draft the
Indictment against Bogg and Worley.
He was at a loss to determine who
owned the automobile at the time it
was stolen Before he ed Turner
owned it, but he had been Stain when
the theft was actually committed. His
wife, Jennie Turner, eventually be-
came owner of the car, but not until
after she had taken out letters of adj
ministration upon her husbands es-
tate, so there is a question whether
she was the owner when it was stolen
or somebody else.
Solicitor General Hartridge delve0
through the GEORGIA decisions but
found nothing on this point to guide
him, so he fell back upon the old Eng
fish common law, and alleged in the
bill that the automobile was the prop
erty of Turner, in one count, and in
another count that the wife owned the
machine, and still in a third count
that it was the property of Judge
Henry McAlp ne, the county ordinary.
The latter was named on the idea
that as ordinary personal property in
a case like this would be his pending
the taking out of letters of admins
tration on the estate of the deceased.
The Georgia supreme court has
never been called upon to decide a
gust on of this character, probably
for the reason that case exactly like
this has never been tried in the state.
Here is an instance where the men
who admit they stole the property of
the slain man are acquitted of the
charge of murder. Property is fire.
quently stolen at the same time MUIR
der is comm tied, but the slayers have
always escaped punishment for the
theft, because the lesser crime is lost
sight of in the light of the serious
ness of the greater.
A different state of facts exists this
time, however, as the accused men
were acquitted of the greater crime
but at the same tine admitted the les
ser.
Just when Boggs and Worley will
ha oa1lod upop tO come hack IN GeOr-
gia to be tried for the theft of the au-
tomobile has not yet been fixed. Their
case has not yet been assigned for
trial, though it will perhaps be given
a date before the end of this week as
the trial of Grimm cases begins in
the superior court on Thursday and
will continue until the docket has
been cleared, which will probably con-
sumo the major part of the month of
November
When the jury's verdict acquitting
Boggs and Worley of murder was an
nounced, the solicitor general stated
that he would prosecute the defendants
on the charge of 'arceny. At that tine
the statement was scarcely received
with seriousness by the defendants,
and their advisors despite the fact
that they were required to give bond
for their appearance in the event a
true bill were returned