Arizona republican., 1914-06-24
A. J. Burge, Companion of Tap Booth, Saw Defend ant Shoot Deceased As He Lay on Cot in a Tent
DOCTOR SAYS ANY
 OF SHOTS FATAL
Evidence in Murder Trial is Opened by the State Who Ask for Verdict of Murder ill the Firs t Degree

Murder ill the Firs t
 Degree
 County Attorney Frank A. Lyman in his statement on behalf of the state to the jury now hearing evil dence in the case of the state vs. Dr. l.. E. Wiggins, charged with murder, asked for a verdict of mur- der in the first degree He stated that the state proposed to show that the defendant went to the sugar planting camp near Tempe where Tap Booth, the deceased, was em- ployed, and after assuring himself that Booth was there woke him by calling him Tap, Tap, Tap" and in answer to the mans reply, hello" shot him twice before he could raise himself from his pollow One of these bullets entered the head. and another the neck. Booth fell over the cot on the other side from Wiggins and sent three more shots into the body of his victim. All this occurred within a short space of time. about ten minutes after five on the morn- ing of April of the present year
 Following the statement of the county attorney. the first witness for the state, A. J. Burge, was calleG Burge was sleeping near the tent in which Booth was also sleeping on hot i,V1,, mony, and at the time stated above awoke from his sleep and sat up. He sho' tly became conscious of the pres ence of a man near him, who asked if he krew the planting foreman. The witness said he did and that he was 1 Tap Booth. Where is he?" was asked. Asleep in that tent,' replied the, witness pointing to the tent in which Booth was asleep, the flaps of which were open. According to the witness, the defendant then walked to the inside of the tent, struck a match and looked at the sleeping mans face, saying, Yes, that's him. y The next thing the witness knew, the defendant had d gun in his right hand and then calling Tap, Tap. Tap he shot him twice in rapid succession. The wounded man rolled i off the bed on to the ground and the defendant then leaned over and 1 fired three more times.
 1 Immediately thereafter the defend ant backed away from the tent and said to the witness, Don't be afraid I am not going to hurt you" How ever this was not until after he had reloaded his weapon. The witness afterwards saw the defendant in cused at bar was the man who con- mitted the deed
 Cross examination by Reese NJ Ling failed to effect the story of the witness, and after a short while he was allowed to go pr. F. C. Brecher of Tempe was the next witness call ed. He had examined the body of the dead man and was of the opinior that any one of the bullets would prove fatal Two of the bullets en- tered the head lacerating the brair and the spinal chord The other shots penetrated the thoraX. At this poin and before cross examination could be had, an adjournment was taker until this morning at half past nine
 Getting the Jury
 The task of obtaining the jury tool all of the morning and about three Iquarters of an hour in the afternoon Then the panel of twenty mine wa complete and the state and defens' proceeded to make pre- -emptory chal
 lenges allowed by law. When com
 pleted the jury stood composed O the following men:
 F. D. Blackmer, rancher.
 F. J. Jones, rancher.
 Dave Clark, rancher
 J. s. McIlwaine, electrician.
 Rosel Cooley, rancher.
 M. S Miller. rancher
 J. R. McFadden, rancher
 C. H. Gilbert, rancher.
 w. L. Ricketts, clerk
 Burk Miller, rancher.
 F. C. McNabb, merchant. Ed Evans, clerk
 The court room was crowded to greater degree than on the previou day. and with the information abroa that the testimony was about to be : gin, the room filled up to q greate degree. Through it all, with the eye of the jury upon him. as we'll a
 those of the spectators, the defend ant sat still without showing tn : slightest sign of emotion His littl son played at his knee, but tE ? mother was absent, suffering from collapse following the strain of th first day.
 Zack Booth. father of the murdere . man took a seat with the counsel fC the state as soon as the jury ha y been fobtained. The uncle of the de = ceased sat within the rail, while otht : friends sat outside the bar and yer near so as not to miss a word (Continued on Page Fivel