El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1915-05-01
TRIAL
MAY NOT CONE Up
UNTIL IN AUTUMN
American Charged with Muir
dering His Wife in Italy
Expects Release.
TESTIMONY FROM
U. S. is AWAITED

~ ONE, Italy, May Although July
next will mark the elapse Of five
l. years since Porter Charlton was
arrested on the charge Of numbering
his wife in Italy. the case. it is learned,
will not come to trial before autumn,
if by then.
His counsel ADVOCATE Catapano. re-
Gently discussing the present delay.
said.
There are two reasons for the de-
lay, the examination of the witnesses
in America and the observations which
are being taken Of the prisoners men
sane at Como.
bring over any of his witnesses for the
trial. they all had to have their testi-
mOny taken at home, which was a COM
plicated process, conducted through the
Departments of Justice and Foreign al
fairs, both Italian and American. If
that had not been done there would
have been the probability of his being
judged at the Assizes without one wit
ness for the defence present
Must Determine Mental State.
Instead the testimony OF the Il wit
nesses in the United States will be read.
the testimony being Of great import
ance, given the defence assumed which
is the total irresDOnsibilirV of the ac-
cused. The Investigations cannot be
closed, and therefore be made public
unai the experiments TO establish
whether Charlton is insane have been
given in May. Thus in June. or at the
latest in July, the decision viii be given
out, so that the trial can come on IN
the early autumn. AvvacatO Cata-
panO. however, said that this was not
at all sure. as should Italy be at war
the trial would scarcely take place.
You see" he continued, Como is
a frontier town, and in case Of war
even the courts Of justice will be up
set Charlton knows this and has not
shown any great concern He seems 10
be resigned 10 his position and thinks
he viii ultimately be released mean
while he is allowed all the physical ex-
ercises to which he is so greatly at
tached, that he desires
Deputy Gives Up Case.
To the question why Charlton had
taken his case out Of the hands Of
deputy Porto, Advocate CatapanO re-
piled, ct cannot be said that the case
has been taken from him. the deputy is
very mucn occupied ana gave IL up vol
unfairly. as he could not devote SUI
ficient time TO il, and il is quite pos
sible that he may deliver the final
harangue. It has been said that the
Charlton family were much disguised
at the time wasted over the tIme-rak-
ing OF the testimony in America, and
that deputy Porto. as a member Of
Parliament did not hurry up matters
as he might have done. but this is not
so. as the fault lies entirely in our pro-
cedure- an enormous fault when one
considers that it took almost a year
to conclude the first normal legal in
Quiries
May Be short Trial.
'-The counsel for the defence will
be two. Advocate CatapanO of Como.
and myself, ADVOCATE Palmieri Of New
York who is cOsnizant Of everything,
viii come to Italy for the trial
I expect that the trial viii be short.
as all the testimony for the
defence viii be read, while only a few
people Of McItrasio, where the murder
took place, will be heard, so that time
viii only be consumed hearing the wit
ness. Captain Scott brother Of the vic
tim. and in the discussion Of the ex-
perts on sanity and in my address TO
the jury