The Washington times., 1922-12-15
MRS. FORD Says
MIND BLANK
0hPL0T
Denies She Arranged to Have
Husband Slain BY Hired
ounman.
y WILLIAM n. sTOKLEY,
Intsrnatisnal News Sssyice.

DETROIT. Dec. 1b.-vehemently
asserting her innocence and claim
ing that her mind 10 q complete
blank in regard TO the plot against
her. Mrs. May B. Ford, charged
with offering \ supposed gun
man" $4,000 to kin her wealthy
husband. Ney b. Ford. and burn
the body. appeared Tor examination
today In Records Court.
It 10 just another frame up"
engineered by her husband to
blacken her character and make
her friends and neighbors think
her an. immoral woman. she claims.
Detectives hired by her husband
have bounded her for months and
repeated attempts to frame" her
have been made. she says. Mrs.
Ford says she doesn't remember
whether she saw Lieut.. Edward w.
Kunath before she was confronted
BY him In the prosecutors office.
Mrs. Ford admits she IL subject
to memory iapses. Ney B. Ford 10
|a second cousin Of Henry Ford.
Detroit auto king.
Has Mesnsry IApses.
Il have had moments Of con.
duct when ! was not responsible
for what I did," she says. 'Tf I
wanted to Kill. my husband-and I
had ample opportunity to do It
when I was nving with him-being
q nurse could have accomplished
It without anybody ever knowing
anything about the crime This 10
Just another frameup Of his to keep
alimony from me and put me be-
hind the bars. ~ he said he would.
He told me when left him that
he would put me behind the bars.
my husband tried to 'ffume' me
once before. A good friend Of his
came to me saying that he would
SEQ to Il that Ney was killed and
that would get the money. fFord
10 feputed to be worth $600,00O). Il
told him would have nothing to do
with the plot. / don't remember any.
thing shout II. don't know that
any OF these things they accuse me
Of ever happened-" 4
Police Allese crap"
According to police, Mrs. Ford wns
trapped after q Toledo man had
clipped" Detroit officers that Mrs.
Ford expressed q desire to meet a
dependable killer" who would &C
cept the Job Of numbering her hus-
band. ~
Lieut.. Ovid Straith was assigned to
the case. The Toledo man arranged
. meeting with Mrs. Ford. In sub
sequent conversations with Straith
Mrs. Ford again voiced a need for q
killer, 1T II alleged. and Kunath. pos,
ing ~ "a Kansas City gunman." was
introduced. ri
Pretending to fan in with the
scheme to kill Ford, Kunath Gays
the woman uffolded her plans with
. calm deliberation that made his
blood run cold. Many plans were
discussed and abandoned - being
too risky" Kunath says.
NJ Plans Wen Laid.
The stage for the last act IN the
drama was carefully arranged.
Kunath made an appointment with
Mrs. Ford In . Park Boulevard
apartment % discuss final htaiIs.
Hidden in m adjoining room were
two !off1ceru-Btra1th ana another. |
The Officers had previously cut n
hole IN the. wall between the two
rooms and placed q newSpaper over
thia with small sits In Il. Con.
versation between Mrs. Ford ana
Kunath was plainly overheard, II
ID said. For an hour ana fiffees, |
minutes they nstened to Mrs.. Ford |
discuss the killing with Kunath,
heard hor revtew her whole life \
with her husband. telling how aha !
had played him to propose ana |
she finally "hooked" him. the off, |
rl6s1 ND aaepsstsd that her hus. |
hand ne waylAH In his farm home |
A. uvhf1A Au1nn IT, c10roa ana rars~~,oA |