The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1921-03-02
COURT OF GENERAL
SESSION ENDED
TODAY

When we went to press Monday
afternoon the jury was out on the
case of The State VS.. Will Kay charg-
ed with murder. After being out sew
eral hours, the jury returned a ver-
dict of guilty of manslaughter." 3"
Judge Townsend sentenced Kay to
hard labor for a term of ten years.
Kay was charged with killing a ne
gro named Will Madden in the Level
Land section of the county.
Bush Williams charged with the
homicide of Will Collier was next
placed on trial. He was defended by
Hon. J. Howard Moore, while the So
licitor was assisted by VIM. P. Greene
Williams shot and killed Collier at a
hot supper near Watts last fall. The
testimony in the case was conflicting,
, several witnesses testifying that the
shots were fired while Collier was
sitting on the floor of the kitchen
shooting craps. The defendant and
one other witness claimed that Will
liams was in the stove. room and that
Collier followed him in there when
the shooting occurred. The defendant
was found guilty of murder with rec
ommendation to mercy, and received
a life sentence.
Robert Taggart was placed on tria !,
for assault and battery with intent
to kill Dock Weston. Weston wanted
to testify but Taggart's counsel did
not consent and produced an old in.
dictment on which Dock had been
convicted .of stealing pig from w.
4. Cromer. The docuTant was old,
the true bill in tie case having been
returned in 1854, with ". Joel Smith
as foreman of the grand Jury. the late
Charley Allen was witness. When
.:ked whether he was the man Dock
was not inclined to admit it. The
Judge pressed Dock on whether he
had ever been to the penitentiary,
but the most Dock would admit was
that he chad seen it." Finally the
judge concluded that Dock had lit
tie more than "seen" the penitentiary,
and he was not allowed to testify.
The case resulted in verdict Of not
guilty.
Another amusing incident came out
on the trial of Dock, or while he was
being tried. One of the older men of
the community recalled the time
when Judge Fraser sentenced Dock
to year in the penitentiary for steal
ing the pig. Dock is said to have pro-
tested to the judge that the sentence
was too heavy because as he told the
Judge, "it was leetle bit of old pig,
could have put it in a pot"
Will Houston was tried in his abb
sence for shooting negro named
Kennedy in the Calhoun Falls Sec
ton. Kennedy was shot with pistol,
being struck in the back, the bullet
going through him. The parties were
contending for the favors of dusky
maiden who resided in the communi-
ty, and they met at her home. The
testimony of the prosecuting witness
left doubt in the minds of the jury as
to how the shooting occurred and the
defendant was acquitted. He may
now come back home. He was repre-
sented at the trial by D. H. Hill, Esq.
B. B. Evans, J. A. Ramsey and
Russell Evans were next placed on
trial charged with manufacturing and
storing contraband liquors. 1t is
charged that they were operating a
distillery in the Little River section
of the county. Grade Smith found
the still and identified several parties
as being present while the still was
being operated. among them Russell
Evans. He claimed that he saw the
defendants B. B. Evans and j. A.
Ramsey in the immediate vicinity of