Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1921-04-28
NEW TRIAL MOTION
|. Of WILLIAMS To Be
HEARD SATURDAY

Judge John B. Hutcheson, Of the
Stone Mountain circuit, will hear
the motion for a new trial of John
S. Williams, owner of the Jasper
county murder farm" at Decatur
Saturday morning at 10 o'clock.
Williams is under a life sentence
for the murder of Lindsay Peterson,
one Of the eleven negro farm hands
whose bodies were unearthed on his
plantation or washed up from near
by rivers. He is in the Fulton tow
er pending the outcome of the hear
ing of his new trial motion.
Greene F. Johnson, the well-known
Monticello lawyer who represented
the farmer, in Newton county SUI
perior court last month, has ridi-
culed current reports that Williams
will abandon his fight for a new
trial and accept the courts sentence
of life Imprisonment.
I'VE are going to fight for a new
trial, and if we get it, we are going
to fight still harder for a verdict
of acquittal at the hands of the
Ten indictments, all charging muir
der, are standing against Williams
in Newton and Jasper counties. His
sons, Huland, Leroy and Marvin are
also, under indictment in Jasper
county, and Clyde Manning, the ne
gro ''trusty" who declared he killed
a number of farm hands at Williams
command, is under indictment in
both counties.
More Killings Alleged
Since the trial of Williams in New
ton county several weeks ago, fed
eral agents have been active in in
vestigating reports of additional
murders on the death farm" They
announced last week that they now
have in their possession conclusive
evidence that at least six other
negroes have been killed on the plan-
tation-some of them as far back as
1910.
This evidence, they declared, is
much stronger than that which the
state presented in the first trial. and
is. they further declared, corrobo-
rated largely by evidence of white
witnesses The government agents
will place this evidence at the
states disposal when Williams is
next brought to trial.
Solicitor General A M. Brand, or
the Stone Mountain circuit, in whose
district Williams was tried and con-
victed, has announced he will oppose
the new trial motion at Decatur on
Saturday.
A lively battle between Solicitor
Brand and Attorney Johnson is ex-
pected to develop over several OF
the legal phases of the famous case.
In the event Williams is granted
new trial, the state probably VIII
take steps to place him on trial
again in Newton county early In
May.
In the event his motion is Denied
it is regarded as highly likely that
Newton county will surrender Jurls-
diction to Jasper county, and that
the officials of that county will
prepare to try the wealthy planter
on one of the indictments recently
returned against him by the Jasper
county grand jury.
Fight Over Venue
Solicitor General Campbell has
announced that the Newton county
verdict Of life Imprisonment would
not prevent the Jasper county court
from trying Williams "a soon as it
can obtain jurisdiction" He de-
clared Williams will be prosecuted
in his court to the full extent of the
law.
A fight over a change of venue
from Jasper county is expected to
begin Immediately after Newton
county releases the jurisdiction of
the defendant. The citizens of the
county are apparently divided as to
tn wisdom of a change of venue,
Governor Dorsey has urged that the
case be transferred from Jasper
county to Bibb or some other county
for trial.
In the event the way is cleared
for the trial of Williams in Jasper
county, Judge j. B. Park has declar-
ed it will be impossible to reach the
case until June or July. He will be
engaged in other counties in his
circuit until that date, he said.
Williams attorneys will reach At
lanta Thursday for a conference pre-
liminary to the hearing of their
clients motion for a new trial be-
fore Judge Hutchinson Saturday, it
was learned Wednesday.
d i IT