Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-01-30
HOLmESRELATES
HIS0WN VERSION
OF THE SHOOTING
Defendant Insists Mrs. Emma Ghy!
Grappled with Him on Stairway
on Fateful Night.
HELD REVOLVER IN HER HANDi
States His Victim Threatened to Shoot
Him ii lie Ever Came Near Her
Apartment Again.

In a dramatic recital yesterday aft
erno0n in circuit court John A. Holmes
gave his own version of the shooting
Of Mrs Emma Ghys in her apartment
over her husbands saloon in East
Moline May 2S, 1917.
In his story Holmes denied several
statements made by state witnesses
and still insisted that Mrs. Ghys Crap
pied with him and held gun when he
sought TO enter the Ghys fiat. On the
morning of the day Mrs. Ghys met her
death, Holmes stated that he visited
the fiat at II O'Clock to see if Mrs.
Garrison would not return to her
home, and he claimed on that occasion
Mrs. Ghys had threatened to shoot
him 'if he came sneaking around
there again"
AT 11:l5 at night" Holmes con-
tnued. Il entered the stairway to the
fiat and let the screen door slam so
they would know was coming. When
| was about two steps from the top
saw Mrs. Ghys. She came rushing to-
ward me and pushed me back, saying,
Get out of here, you dirty --. l
am not going to have you coming up
here
Il got hold Of her hand and felt
gun. From the way it felt, be-
lieved it was a 32-calibre Smith &
Wesson. tThe witness stated later
that Mrs. Garrison possessed such a
gum. | reached for my gun and got
Il in position to shoot into her arm. |
aimed at her arm and she swung
around as | fired She backed up to
the bath room and then-well she dis
appeared"
At this point Holmes demonstrated
70 the jury the position which each
was in during the scuffle and how Mrs.
Ghys swung around to receive the bull
tet in her heart instead of her arm.
Holmes said the next thing he heard
was the voice of Mrs Garrison, crying
Emma. Emma, what's the natter
To this he replied, What do you
want?" and she answered:
oh. daddy, what have you dOne?"
Il said, damned if | know; come
and see
She said, you won't shoot me, will
YOU, daddy and said, of course not
you poor. deluded creature. | would
not harm a hair of your head, nor
Of others unless they threaten me
and if they do that they do it at their
peril"
Holmes denied that he had been in
to kitchen or dining room, as had
been testified to by both Mrs. Garrison
nj Arthur Ingals. After the police
zen came Holmes said he came up tC
see Alice and the Ghys woman assaulted
him. Holmes said that the policeman
walked on over to Mrs Garrison and
said. HE shot her. didn't he?" and she
answered. Yes, but he shot the wrong
woman" Holmes said he handed his
-un over to the policeman and never
made any denial of the shooting.
Il SAID. when he TOOK my gun, You
ret her gun, and ] think there was
somebody down the hall" He eX-
claimed to them that Mrs. Ghys told
i'm she had two guns up there, and
re said then that Mrs. Garrison owned
the Smith e. Wesson revolver.
Holmes related part of converse
ton that he had had with Mrs. Gar,
rison prior to the shooting relative to
ne chara cter of Mrs. Ghys:
Daddy cant get right. This wo-
man is fallen woman and that wO-
man is fallen woman. There IS Mrs
F'rankel: she is a good woman with
c'lildren. and if could associate with
woman like her I could do better
on are away and go out with these
omen. and when I go out with them
! get drunk"
Holmes said he then obtained rooms
at the Frankel residence. with the
understanding that Mrs. Ghys should
not come there to visit Mrs Garrison
The witness stated that he had been
- tho mayor and city attorney OF
East Moline with complaint with re-
gard TO the character of the Ghys
apartment, telling them he had reason
% believe Mrs Ghys was running a
blind pig and an designation house.
According to Holmes, Mrs. CARR
son went to the Ghys apartment a
week before the shooting and remain
Cd there until the fsteful night He
said that at II O'Clock in the morning
Ct the day of the shooting he went to