Arizona republican., 1913-09-14
MORRELL'S GUN
 KILLS MEXICAN
Policeman Draws His Gun When Rafael Rehada In terferes and MicariO Lopez Receives Death
 Wound, Resisting Arrest

] Fifteenth and Grand avenues at 6: 30 o'clock last evening, attempted to Wrest the officers gun from his pos session, discharging the weapon and receiving a bullet wound near the groin from which he died forty-fiVc ! minutes later in the police station. The bullet severed the femOral vein,
 shattered the thigh bone and passed
 entirely through the leg. Dr. H. K. Beauchamp who was hastily sum
 moned. found it impossible to render
 any effectuaI aid.
 About 6:15 o'clock d call was re II CCiVed at the police station annOunc-
 ing a fight in progress in the vicinity oi d small grocery store on Grand
 avenue just inside the city limits. Chief Moore detailed Policeman Nor rel who made a hurried run on his
 motorcycle. Arriving at the store, MorreI found City Zanjero Tom Levi
 engaged in attempting to separate two Mexicans who were fighting. | MorreI caught hold of Lopez and a l scuffIe ensued.
 While MorreI was engaged with Lopez, Rafael Rehada, mounted and 1 wearing large spurs, rode upon Levi. l With his spurs which he had re moved from his boots he struck Levi | over the head, inflicting with the | sharp points numerous deep cuts from which the blood streamed down over the zanjero's face and shoulders An instant later Rehada started after Morrell who, being warned of his approach by a cry from Levi, started
 to draw his gun.
 No sooner had the officer drawn his gun from it's scabbaId than Lopez renewed his fighting and grabbed at
 the gun with both hands. Morrell, | in attempting to prevent his adver- 1 sary from wrestling the weapon from 1 his possession, threw his weight upon i the man and they were both going 1 tu the ground when the weapon was
 discharged. Morreu did not have his
 hand upon the trigger and it is be | ieved that the hammer became
 cooked by catching on one or the | others clothing
 As Lopez fell with the bullet wound
 in his left groin, MorrelI recovered his
 weapon and turned upon Rehada, who had almost instantly become sobered and offered no further fight. He was 1 relieved of a big knife and his spurs and placed under arrest together with r.. A. Quihuiz and Mike AIday, the | latter two of whom were held as
 witnesses of the affair
 As quickly as possible the injured
 man and the prisoners were taken 1 to the police station Dr. Beauchamp
 upon arriving at once announced that | Lopez had but few minutes to live | and Coroner Johnstone was i'm
 mediateIy summoned in the hope that
 fn ante -mortem statement might be obtained. He was, however uncon- l scious when the coroner arrived.
 A few minutes after the death of | Lopez, Coroner Johnstone impanelle1 l a jury consisting of Ed l.. Shaw, pr
 John T. Dunlap, Henry George, George | Elias, Senator II. A. Davis and L. E. | Bigley. After reviewing the remains the inquest was adjourned to ten | o'clock Monday morning. The coroner l directed the removal of the body to | the Merryman & Hayt undertaking 1 rooms and ordered pr. Beauchamp 1 to make an examination of the wound. 1 MCrrell was subpoenaed as a witness
 and those arrested at the time of l the shooting were ordered held until
 after the inquest.
 While regretting the unfortunate | outcome of his attempt to bring an | end to a drunken braWl which, ac- cording to people living in the vici- 1 nifty of Fifteenth and Grand avenues, | had continued tor some time, Police
 ma Morrell stated last evening that he cannot see how he was in any way to blame.
 T did not shoot Lopez and had no
 intention of doing so. Had he been | the only man with whom 1 was hav- ing trouble at the time l could have handled him easily and without re-
 course to my gun. l only drew my , gun when Levi called to me that an ether man was coming at me from behind with q knife. l Whirled just as Rehada seemed about to run me down and I saw the blood streaming from the cuts on Lewis head. I ex- pected to intimidate Rehada with my gun, but Lopez grabbed at the wea- pon and caused it's discharge. So far ds l can see he had no person to blame but himself I do not even believe my hand was upon the trig ger at the time the weapon was dis charged.
 Four or five Mexicans, among
 them Lopez, Rehada and Quihuiz had
 been drinking and carrying on for several hours in the vicinity of the
 grocery store. I was told that Re hada had driven several customers from the store.
 Lopez had a wagon hitched in the brush near the spot and in the wagon and in the grass nearby was found d keg of beer, many bottles of beer and some boxes of candy. It seems to
 me the men were preparing for {,
 time over Sunday and had begun
 early. When I arrived I found the zanjero attempting to keep Lopez and another man from fighting. Lopez just then seemed to be the most az gcessiVe of the lot and it was to
 him I at once turned my attention. was attempting to search him, hav- ing been warned that he had knife
 l don't know whether he had d knife