Omaha daily bee., 1922-03-04
Murderer of
Chicago Men
Penalty
Harvey W. Church Is Hanged
for Staying of Auto Sales.
men-Coes to GalIows
Strapped to Chair.

Chicago, March 5.-Harvey w.
Church, strapped in a chair, dropped
through the trap at the county Jail
at 1854 this afternoon and 10 min
utes later was dead of strangulation.
The force OF the drop broke the
chair, but did not dislocatc his neck.
Thus ended the career Of one of
the most cold -blooded murderers in
the criminal history of Chicago, to
save whose life the most frantic ef-
forts have been made by various at
torneys.
Alienists have claimed all along
that Church was stimulating insanity
and this was proved by the fact that
he shook off his stupor on the way
to tha gallows and during his last
moments i'll the death chamber. He
called for his parents and sister. His
mother tainted and was unable to
respond, but his father and sister
did what they could to comfort
him.
On the way to the gallows he
perspired freely and after the moose
and cap had been adjusted, he began
to pray. At first he nunbled, but
his voice became stronger and he re-
peated the Lords prayer distinctly.
Then he lapsed into silence again, the
signal was given and the trap was
sprung. These were the first words
he had spoken for 46 days, when he
began his hunger strike.
Prisoners Silent.
Other prisoners in the Jail did not
stage their usual hideous clamor of
obscenity, profanity and rafting of
cell doors. Heretofore this has been
one of the features of an execution,
but this time everything was silent.
Even as Church was being hanged,
an outside attorney, who had no con-
nection with the case, was making
desperate efforts to secure a stay of
execution. Church's own attorneys
had previously exhausted every
known means of preventing his
execution.
The murders for which Churcl,
was hanged were committed Sep
tember 8 Of last year. Church, who
wanted new automobile, went to
the Packard company, picked out a
$1,000 car, and asked that a salesman
be sent with him and the car to a
bank, where he had certified check
waiting. Bernard ]. Daugherty was
directed to accompany him and as
an afterthought the manager also
told Carl 0. Ausmus, another sales
man, to go along. Church tried to
dissuade Ausmus. but they. finally
got in the car. Instead OF going to |
a bank he asked them to drive by his
home until he attended to an errand.
He went into the house and in a
few seconds appeared at basement
door and beekoned Daugherty to
come in. As Daugherty descended
the stairs, Church hit him over the
head with baseball bat. Then he
dragged the body into a coal bin.
cut Daugherty's throat, handcuffed
him and cleaned up the floor.
Ausmus Also Slain.
Ten minutes later Ausmus, worried
owe. Daugherty's absence, started
down the stairs. He, also, was struck
down, his hands tied and he was
beaten to unconsciousness. Church
testified that Ausmus was not dead
when he buried him under the garage
floor and that he stamped on his face
and chest to crowd him into the mar
row grave.
He took Daugherty's body to the
Desplaines river and threw it in. Half
an hour later be returned to his
home, whistling 1mcrrily and asked a
neighbor to take ride in his new 1
car. That night he and his mother
and two girls drove to Indiana Har-
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