The evening herald. [volume] (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 1914-1922, 1922-05-19

murder IN the first degree M the
ease Of Sieve Katonka
Judge lIolloman sentenced
him 10 be hanged on june l6.
AZTEC. n NJ MAY is-closing
arguments were begun this morn
ing Ia the trial Of steve Katonka.
charged with the murder Of VIII
liam Kelley and Sam Groy. taxi
drivers. last August. on the road
near Shiprock. kntonka was the
only witness for this defense. Alice
Katonka. the defendant repIted
W 10. testified against him. Dis
trict Attorney Alexander Read dis
covered that the pair had not been
legally married and that therefore
the woman could testify against
Katonka.
She told on the stand that Ka-
tonka had forced her. at the poin;
Of q pistol and with a threat OF
death. to shoot one Of the two men.
she declared she half tainted ar
ter pulling the trigger and that sne
heard two shc's. when she re-
covered her senses she found both
men dead. Katonka, ahe testified.
then hid the bodies under a culvert
and the pair proceeded to Pitts
! bufgh. Pa, where they were later
arrested. after kntonka had wet.
ten local authorities telling them
i - a.. nd lanaaa Ftu ha
woman,
Katonka, In his own defense.
blamed his wife for the murder.
Isodlic- idcntifiec.
Kntonka h. thirty-thrcc years old
/ His record as shown by the evi-
dence. IL that he served a term In
a reform school. IN an Austrian by
birth. has taken out his first pa
pers but Is not an American citi-
zen. His occupation H. a coal
miner.
Tho bodies of Groy and Kelly
were produced In the court for
Identification. a woman who stated
she has lived with Groy as his
wife for four years. but was not
married To him. Identified his skull
and teeth. stick pin. cuff links and
note book. The clothes Of Kelly
were Identified hy his father.
Expert testimony was given by
Abrams that the holes in the skulls
were made by a bullet not smaller
than thirty-elEht and not larger
than a foriysfiVe. burrows. from
whom the forty-five was stolen on
| May 30. who has served fifteen
years In the " :. army medical
corps In Cuba and went through the
hattie ~ Fan Juan hill and In In
dian wars positively stated that this
round hole in Kelly's head wa,
made by a forty-five and the wound
on Groy'a head by the same.
The prosecution handled the case
step bv step. having complete
rhain Of evidence showing by com
pctent witnesses nearly every ac'
ion of defendants from day befoF,
they started from Gallup TO tint
of arrest In Pennsylvnnia.
The only legal battle took l,lac'
when Mrs. Katonka was called NJ
witness. defendants attorney
raising the question Of her incom
petence 10 testify being the wifi
of defendant The state sprung
surprise by producing the marriai;'
, record OF Mrs smith. or KRtonka' Z
wife 10 a man Of the name o
smith, and also the record OF
divorce suit started but no decree
D having been issued SO after Ar
! gumeul ~ counsri, court ruled tnn
Mrs. Katonka was not the wife .
Katonka ana was competent q
\ tcstify.
Tciis ~ Murder.
a Her testimony was frank Sh
I "a. a.
e of the car were planned on Satur
day night. the day before she mur
n dor Sho told how the murdc
was committed; that Katonka sho
y the usan DRIVING the car. Groy an
he nointed her twenty-five pists
a. Kelly. closed her eyes an
pulled the trigger; that she hear
n second shot OF the forty-fiv,
which was fired by Katenka. an
when she opened her eyes ~,
Kelly stiffeninG In the seat IN
asscried kaionka draERcd th
hod'es from the ear and nut the,
IN an arroyo under a bridge. clean
/. lns the blood fresn the automobii'
I and descrilsed IN detail the trip {
fpennsyivania.
:, katonka was the only witness r
he defenfs, lie laid al; the bianl
upon airs FHionka ~ ihr chief III
'tiRator Of the crime. His mefuor
n WIS vivid up TO the time % IN
!, actual shootlnE, az which time Nj
u memory failed him and he said h
A did not remember anything Unit
i sof1etlme that night or next day
J. lie also testified that Nr
u Kntonha held ~ rifle acroi
- her lap with the barrel pofntin
Il towards his head sud forced hi
o to kiii tho two men.
IL katoakn made n great numbs
, % contradiction. Ills manner o
- ~ witness stand was cooi an
N calculating.
lc The district attorney will a.
n for a verdict Of first donren fuul