Evening star., 1921-10-22
EASTLAKE MURDER
Up TO GRAND Jury
Hearing Expected to Result
in Separate indictments
Against Accused Couple.

III Seudidtc iiIuiCtiIiSIItS
Against Accused Couple.
special Dispatch to The Star.
MONTROSS, Va, October 22.-Sep-
arate indictments for first degree
|nurder are expected to be returned
against Miss Sarah L. Knox, the Bal
imore nurse, and Roger ID. Eastlake.
havy petty officer. by the grand jury
which conrenes for it's October ses-
sion in the little Westmoreland coun-
~ courthouse here Monday morning.
first degree murder is the charge
under which the couple have been
held since the finding of the horribly
nutilated body of Mrs., Margaret
t;astlake. the navy officers wife, in
The Eastlake. cottage at Colonial
b,each on September 80.
With virtually no other business ne
fore the grand jury, and it being GUS
omary for the circuit court to con,
vene Immediately after the grand
Jury adjourns. it was indicated today
hat sheriff B. S. Griffith will be in
ts,ructed by Circuit Court Judge 10.
Seph Wilson Chinn to summons at
nnce a vcnirc for the Eastlake case.
lt is believed that the jury Will be
tmpaneled Tuesday. and that testl-
bnony will begin the following day.
Prisoners to BE Transferred.
Miss Knox and Eastlake. who have
been confined in the Richmond city
all since their removal from the
Fredericksburg prison on October ),
h. i'll be brought to Montross some time
tomorrow in custody of Serst. Will
lam y Toler, Identification expert OF
has been investigating the case al
hr request of Gov. estmoreIand
Davis, and Town Sergt. Thomas Hall
IT Colonial Beach. They will be Kept
n the westmoreland county jail mere:
" bich is within stones throw OF
ne courthouse where they Will be
tried.
There has been some talk of having
rhe prisoners kept in the Fredericks.
burg jail tomorrow night. ana
brought to Montross early MONDAY
morning, on account of the apparent
5Sentiment against them at Colonial
|Heach Westmoreland county authori-
les however contend that there is
pittle. ii any, bitter feeling against
he couple in any other part OF the
"unty, and indicate that they will
oppose any move to have them placed
bin the Fredericksburg Jail.
Difficult to Choose Trial Jury.
|
Nestmoreland county residents to sit
lin Judgment as to the guilt or inno-
Icence of Miss Knox and Eastlake is
anticipated by several officials here.
b, is their belief that the majority of
the citizens have formed an opinion
Relative to the case. In such an event,
il was said. it may be necessary for
counsel for the accused couple to re-
}lueSt a change of venue.
Defending Eastfake will be Attor-
hey William w. Butzner of Freder-
fcksburg and Thomas Hunter of King
fieorge Court House. both of whom
have represented their respective
localities in the Virginia state legis-
[ature, and who are regarded as the
pest criminal lawyers in this section
|of the state. 1t is understood that
Miss Knox has engaged Harry NJ.
Smith, jr., noted Richmond attorney.
|as her counsel.
Whether Miss Knox and Eastlake
will be tried jointly or separately has
mot been made known. 1t is believed
|h-re. however. that each of the pris-
|cners Will ask for a separate trial.
torney of Westmoreland county. will
lead in the prosecution. Assisting him
will be Charles w. Moss, Richmond at
torney, and native of Westmoreland.
The trial of the accused couple, it is
believed, will be brief. The defense
Few character witnesses. The prosecu-
tion's witnesses consist principally of
natives of Colonial Beach, who were
of the Eastlakes.
Children Main witnexses.
Roger Eastlake, jr., nine-year-old
son of the accused man, and Catherine,
his five-year-old daughter, undoubted-
ly will be the two most important wit
nesses at the trial. What these two
children know about the brutal murder
of their mother has not YET been re-
veaIed, although both of them gave
the coroner's jury at Colonial Beach
sufficient intimations that they know
more about the crime than they have
told.
Little Catherine told the coroner's
jury that she saw a man on the front
porch of her home the morning the
crime was committed wearing a black
raincoat: This man. she is alleged to
have said. resembled her father.
The boy testified. without knowl-
edge of the tragic portent of his
words, that he was awakened from
his early morning slumbers by Miss
Knox on the morning his mother was
hacked to death. With these two chill
Gren the prosecution hopes to more
lay the crime at the door
OF Eastlake and Miss Knox.
The children, who have been in the
custody of their uncle. the Rev.
Thomas P. Yardley of Catonsville.
Nd. will be brought to Montross to-
lhorrow to appear before the grand
jury. Their uncle Is under 5000 bond
70 return them here for the grand
jury session and the trial.
Record Crowd Anticipated.
Montross and Colonial Beach, twenty
miles away. made preparations tona,
for accommodating a record-breaking
crowd during the trial of Eastlake
and Miss Knox. Hotel proprietors here
and at Colonial Beach have already
received communications from per-
sons all over the state of Virginia
and from Baltimore, Phiiadelphia and
requesting that rooms be
reserved for them for the period of
the trial.
As there is only one small hotel at
M"ntross. the majority of the curious
1ersons who are anxious to witness
seek quarters at Colonial Beach.
MEXICO IMPOSES HEAD TAX