The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1920-04-14

KENNETH GOSSETT
FOUND GUILTY
Abbeville Jury Decides That He
Committed Criminal As
sault On GirHSen-
fenced 40 Years

SaulL OU OlTt7CtH.
fenced 40 Years
Abbeville, April 10.-Kerneth Cos
sett, seventeen-year-old youth, will
have to serve what is practically a
life sentence in the State penitentiary
for criminal assault on a sixteen year
old-girl, a native Of Abbeville.
After being out for four hours and
, 1ifty-fve minutes the jury which has
been hearing the case of the Honea
Path youth, returned at o'clock a
verdict Of rape with recommendation
to the mercy Of the court, and Judge
Thomas s. Sease Immediately pro-
nounced the extreme penalty Of ths
law-fcrty years Imprisonment at
hard labor.
The finding of the jury and the
! pronouncement Of the sentence were
heard in stoical silence by the youth.
| Two of the brothers of the prosecu-
trix were in court, and tears ran down
| the cheek Of the older one.
Attorneys for the defendant, who
| had fought the case bitterly since
last Monday in the face of public in
dignation against the crime, appealed
for new trial on the grounds that
the court was illegally constituted.
and that the venire was not drawn
according to the law, in contrs7en-
ton to both the Constitutions of
South Carolina! and of the United
States The motion was overruled.
They will appeal to the Supreme
Court.
Hopes 1t Will Be Lesson.
| in passing sentence, Judge Sease
said that he presumed that the rea=
son why the jury recommended mercv
| was because Of the extreme youth OF
Kenneth Gosse.t He hoped that the
lesson which has been taught In the
court this week will have a deterrent
effect on others who commit like
| crimes He said that. in passing the
sentence, he did. which was in effect
a life imprisonment, he hoped that
the prisoner would contemplate on
| the wrong he had done.
There was no demonstration when
the verdict was announced. There
| was some surprise that the youth
should be found guilty. It was
thought by many that there might be
| an acquittal, and it appeared when
the jury stayed out as long as it did
that there. might be a mistrial
When it became known that the
| jury had agreed the court hoasesbe
gan slowly to fill up and there was
hush of solernnity as the jury filed
in and announced its verdict
On the same verdict which con
demned Kenneth Gossett was written
| the verdict. at the direction of the
, court, which cleared John Gossett
his twenty-five year-oid cousin who
was his companion on the automobile
! trip of March "A.
The jury could have found Kenneth
! Gossett guilty of criminal assault or
attempted criminal assault. which
would have meant the death penalty
or attempted criminal assault with
recommendation to mercy. which
would have carried a sentence OF
from FIVE to forty years. the same as
| in the first count. or of assault OF q
highly aggravated nature. which
would have carried verdict OF from
! three months to ten years.
Arguments are Brilliant.
The arguments this morning were
/ brilliant efforts by all counsel. HON
er S. Blackwell. Of Laurens. solicitor
of the Eighth circuit, opened for the
! State, and he was followed by Gen
eral NJ. l.. Bonham. of Anderson, and
his son, State Senator Proctor A. Bon
/ ham, of Greenviile, Of counsel tor the
defense. George Bell Zimmerman, OF
/ Lexington, solicitor Of the Eleventh
/ judicial circuit. closed for the State.
! The case went to the jury at l.03
j O'Clock this afternoon and the verdict
! was returned at o'clock.
The jury was tied up so long be-
/ cause it was divided as to whether II
should find a verdict of guilty or one
/ of guilty with recommendation to the
mercy of the court, it is rumored.
Mrs Gossett. mother of the defend
ant, held up throughout the trial. oul
when the sentence had been passed
upon him she threw her arms ABOUT
!; her boy. kissed him and prayed over
him. His father threw his arms
around him and cried.
The defendants father and mother
when homeward bound in. an automo-
bile, passed him as he was being car
ried to the Jail.
+! The defendant left for Columbia on
the ITO o'clock train in the CUSTODY
| of United States Deputy Marshal
Charles ]. Bruce. Deputy Sheriff T. j.
Cam and Special Deputy Burt Fer
suson. About a dozen people were
at the station among them two BROTH
ers OF. the prosecutrix.