East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1915-09-11


That the murder Of !. 4. Owings.
whose decomposed body was found in
an old well twenty miles northwest OF
PendletoL Thursday night, was dellb-
erately planned is admitted by John
G. Richardson, the confessed murder
er. He lured Owings into a sparsely
settled community with which he was
well acquainted, shot him twice when
he was not looking. hauled him to
the old well in sageArush bottom
and threw the body in. all according
to previously laid plans
Richardson holds to his story that
he planned and executed the murder
because Owings persistently spoke
insultingly Of his wife. who was once
the wife of Richardson, and OF Mrs
Jackson, her mother. Sheriff Tay-
lor, however, believes the principal
motive was robbery.
1t took Sheriff Taylor an hour and
half to secure the confession out
of Richardson. Though he was trip
ped up on statement after statement
and made repeated contradictions. he
maintained his innocence until tho
officer had confronted him with a
chain of facts that showed a knowl-
ede Of Richardson's every movement
from the time he left Pendleton with
Owings until his arrest. So complete
was the investigation OF the sheriff
that Richardson's story, when told BY
himself, deviated in no single i'm
portant particular from the sheriff's
theory, save only in the motive.
Richardson said owings had many
times within the past few weeks
spoke insultingly of his wife, the for
mer Mrs. Richardson and OF his
mother-in-law
I never said much to him but
decided to kill him." Richardson told
the officers. Il just thought. you're
away from home and haven't many
friends here so I'll Just put you out
of the way quietly I got him to
take his horses and wagon into the
country where I used to farm by tell
ing him that l had a job for him out
there hauling grain We left here
rather late in the morning Of Mon.
day, August 20, and on the way out
he cursed the women again. When
we were about a couple of miles the
other side of Earl Tulloch's place.
drew the revolver I had borrowed
and shot him twice. He was sitting
at my right and I shot him in the
neck. 1t was all over in a minute. He
gasped a few times and his head fell
back. I reached down and caught
him by the feet and tipped him back
wards into the bed Of the wagon
The horses had stopped when : fired
and. as soon as I had thrown a blan-
ket over the body. / picked up the
lines and drove on straight to the old.
dry well that I had picked out in my
mind. I drove alongside and threw
him in without getting out Of the
wagon"
Richardson said that he then drove
to the s. B. Elder ranch and stayed
all night Next morning he borrowed
a shovel on the pretext Of wanting 10
dAH OAN q AbSuNFs went DaNh 10 LNF
well and threw dirt in on top OF the
body. He then brought the outfit
hack to Pendleton and sold II as the
officers learned So cold booded
was he that he did not even wrap the
body up before burying II. but
brought the blood soaked blanket
back to town and sold II along with
other Of his victims belongings He
said he did not think the body would
ever be found and that his explaua-
ton that Owlngs went on 90 fdaho
would satisfy his friends. Owiugs lly-
ed in Twin Falls and had only been
here for the summer
Asked II his conscience ever hurt
him. ne stated that he found 70 diff
cult to sleep some nights He told
his story. however. without exhibit
ing any emotion whatever. District
Attorney Steiwer and Deputy sheriff
J II. Estes were present mt the time.
Coroner Brown held nm Inquest ov-
er the body yesterday afternoon and
the verdict was IN accordance with
the confession OF the man. This
members OF the jury were O.. r.
Roosevelt, s. A. Mentzer r NJ, OLIVE
or. W C. Rhlnehart Virgil r Moore
and Charles Hamilton. The body was
buried during the afternoon in Olney