The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1922-06-01
JEFFORDS STAYS
HANDS OF STATE
FILES NOTICE OF APPEAL
TO THE STATE SUPREME
COURT.

Ira Harrison and Glenn Treece OF the
murder of John C. Annette and with
Ira Harrison sentenced to die in the
electric chair June Is, Monday after
nocn in 81 words stayed the hands OF
the law by serving notice of his in
tention personally to appeal his case
to the state supreme court. The no.
tice of intention to appeal, which was
signed by Jeffords, himself, was serv-
ed upon Judge w. H. Townsend, So
licitor A. Fletcher Spigner and Clerk
of Court ]. E. Hinnant at 4 o'clock
Monday afternoon. This action au-
tomatically stays the execution of the
sentence of death.
Jeffords signed the brief notice Of
appeal in his own name, so availing
himself of the right under the laws
of the state to act as his own at
torney in appealing to the state su-
preme court. No indication of the
grounds upon which the appeal will
be based was given in the notice.
The notice, written on a typewriter,
follows:
"You will please take notice that
the defendant, Frank NJ. Jeffords, in
tends to appeal and hereby appeals
from the verdict and sentence in the
above case this 29th day of May,
1922" This was headed by the name
of the case.
Under state law he will be allowed
80 days in which to perfect his appeal.
Should it be perfected the case could
not come up before the supreme court
until the second Tuesday in October
when the next session of the court
will be held. The case would then
have to be argued before the court
and if the appeal is sustained the case
probably retired. If the appeal should
be denied Jeffords would then have
to be resentenced before execution.
In case, however, the appeal is never
completed, as was the appeal of S. j..
Kirby, Solicitor Spigner will be fore
ed to wait the expiration of the 30
days before he can take any action
in the circuit court to secure the dis
missal of the appeal. This will carry
the delay beyond the next term OF
court and will postpone the resen-
fencing until the session following.
Harrison as yet has made no move
toward an appeal and it is not known
whether he will follow Jeford's lead
or not. Under the law notice of ap-
peal to the supreme court may be
filed at any time after conviction and
within ten days after the rising of
the court. The session of the court
at which the three men were tried
will last through this week and Har-
rison therefore will be allowed ten
days after Saturday in which to file
notice of appeal. He would then be
allowed the usual 80 days in which
to complete and perfect the appeal.
It is possible also that the state may
secure the postponement of his exc
cution by a series of reprieves from
the governor until the case of Jeffords
has been finally decided.
Treece also has made no move but
is now serving his life sentence in
the state penitentiary.
James H. Hammond and John
Quinn, who were appointed by the
court as .Jeffords' attorneys during
the trial, were in no way connected
with the making of the appeal, it was
announced, both having withdrawn
from the case without prejudice" as
soon as the trial was completed.
Jeffords is as far as is known the
first man, convicted in the Richland
courts, to appeal in person to the
supreme court and so stay the exc
cution of his own sentence.
John c.. Annette, Jeffords' partner
in the Elmwood filling station, was
killed at the filing station at the
corner of Elmwood avenue and Main
street at about II o'clock Tuesday
night, May 9, his head being crushed
by some blunt instrument. Harrison,
Jeffords and Treece were arrested on
charge of murder early in the morn
ing of May 10. The coroner's jury,
meeting Wednesday night, May 10,
recommended that Jeffords and Har-
rison be held as principals in the
nIder and that Treece be held as
a accessory.-Columbia State.
The King Hardware Company, Inc,