New-York tribune., 1922-10-24
Jersey Speed
Marks Bergin
Murder Trial
Jury Drawn i'm 48 Minutes
and State Presents Case
Against Trio in Actors
killing in Six Hours
Six Women Are Jurors
Detective Repeats Alleged
Story Of Girl Describing
Duel and Shot Cline Fired


The defense will open its case TODAY
at the Joint trial in the county court at
HacKensack, N. j., Of George Cline,
MISS Alice Thornton and Charles Soul
lion, brother-in-law Of Cline. for mur-
der IN connection with the killing on
the night Of August 25 Of John Bergin,
motion picture actor.
New Jersey, with a record for sneedv
trials, can point to but few instances.
1t is said, in which the procedure has
been speedier than that which marked
the opening day OF this trial yesterday.
IN less than six hours after the selec-
ton OF the jury-a jury that was
CHOSEN In AZ minutes, tnat has six
women as members, including a twenty
tnree-year-old girl stenographer as
iorerhan--the state had rested it's case.
Dying Statement Held Up
The principal witness placed on the
stand yesterday by Prosecutor A. G..
Hart was County Detective Nathan AL
lyn, of Bergen County. Decision was
reserved by Justice Parker on the ad-
instability of two notes offered in evil
dence Dy the state. One was said to be
the dying statement Of Bergin, reading,
This was frame-up." The other was
SAID to have been note found on Ber-
GIN after his death, reading, George
Cline killed me- A motion made by
counsel for the defense to dismiss the
Indictment agains. Miss Thornton and
Scullion, on the ground that the state
mad produced no evidence to connect
either with the crime, was denied.
Allyn testified as to two statements
made by Miss Thornton. One, he said,
was taken by him at Fort Lee before
the arrest of the girl, and the other
was taken by Assistant Prosecutor
Mccarthy after the arrest. In the lat
ter statement, the witness said, Miss
Thornton declared that when she went
to the Cline home at Edgewater on
the night of the killing Cline, his
wife and Bergin were there, and that
Mrs. Cline said to Bergin: "Jack, !
had to tell my husband because Of the
children" This statement of Mrs
Cline's, according to Detective Allyn
referred to alleged improper relations
between her and Bergin.
Cline, according to Allyn's version
of Miss Thornton's story, then said to
Iergin; "If you have anything to say
let's have it," Bergin answered, ac.
cording to Allyn, "Yes, it's the truth
To this Cline replied: "WeIl have il
out upstairs" and Bergin retorted
"No, we'll have it out here"
Miss Tbornton's statement, accord
ing to the witness, was that Cline then
sent Scullion upstairs for revolver
In speaking further Miss Thornton
according to Detective Allyn, said:
IrWhen the men started to go upstairs
~ 4. -.
I rushed between them and held Mrs
Cline back. Bergin and Cline ther
went upstairs. heard scufle, ther
ono shot, and Bergin came down
stairs, followed by Cline. AS Bergin
went out went into the kitchen to
get drink of water for Mrs. Cline
| and Cline told me to go home. | went
and after / reached home 1 telephoned
to Cline and told him 1 had passed
Bergin lying on the street. Cline made
no answer and hung up the receiver"
Members of Jury
The foreman OF the jury is Miss
Susan S. Squire, of Ridgefeld Park
The others on the jury are BENJAMIN
B. Poor, clerk, of Hasbrouck Heights;
Charles r. Zebb, jeweler, of Closter;
Mrs Susan d. Rogers, Of Dumont;
Mrs. Eugenia F. Muller, of Bogota
Edward F. Krehl, bookbinder, of Du-
mont; Mrs. Louise Fisher, Of Ridge
field Park; Mrs. Julia Parsel, of Ora
del; Gustave Sulzer, shoe merchant, of
Fort Lee; Charles N. Alderman, drafts
man, Of Emerson; Mrs. Adeline p
Brown, of Tenafy, and Kurt Vilter,
loom fixer, of Fort Lee. Thirty-four
talesmen were examined before the
jury was selected.
In opposing the motion for dis
missal of the indictments against Miss
Thornton and Scullion, the prosecutor
said that Scullion had been indicted
because he gave a revolver to Cline
and stood by and witnessed the shoot