Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1923-01-06
BAXLEY WOMAN
AND SONS ADMIT
KILLING 0 BERRY

BAXLEY, Ga. Jan. 5.-A sensation
was sprung Thursday afternoon in
the superior court here when Mrs.
Elvira O'Berry, on trial for murder
of her husband, Lee O'Berry, in
February, 1921, after maintaining for
nearly two years that she did not
know who killed her husband, adj
mitted that she and her two sons did
the killing, but that it was in self
defense. Her two sons, William
O'Berry and Aunley O'Berry, are
Jointly indicted with her and they all
are on trial together this week for
murder.
This being the second trial, the
evidence has been without change
and without sensation on the part of
the state as link by link the state
worked up a strong chain of cir
cumstantial evidence connecting the
three defendants with the killing.
From the first, the death of Lee
O'Berry has been shrouded in
mystery, his wife and sons claiming
that while they were in the house,
their husband and father went out
into the yard and some unknown
person or persons shot and killed
him. Broken lamp chimneys and
parts of broken bottles on the floor
of theNhouse of Lee OSBerry on the
night of the killing told a tale of
struggle that was denied stead
tasty by every member Of the
family, consisting of two other sons
and the wife of William O'Berry,
and under all the fire of cross eX-
animation in their first trials when
they testified for each other the state
was never able to break their story
that they did not know who killed
Lee O'Berry. They were tried and
all convicted and sentenced for life
and appealed to the supreme court
and secured new trials.
Now they have changedtheir story,
admit the killing and claim that Lee
O'Berry was in the act of killing his
wife when hsi sons came to the
rescue of their mother and killed
their father while he was choking
their mother out in the yard whence
she had fled from him after he had
Kicked her down and told her he in
tended killing her then and there.
Son Tells of Killing
When the state closed its evidence,
the defendants went on the stand
and each made a statement to the
jury while the e,tire court room was
in deathly silence, William O'Berry
was the first to take the stand and
he said:
MY father was all right While he
kept sober and was good to US, but
when he got drunk he was very cruel,
to his children and my mother. Mon
day before the killing on Tuesday, I
was plowmg and Auniey went to
school and father cooked whisky. l
told him | saw somebody and it
scared him and he threw away his
whisky and poured out his beer and
that made him mad. He said it was
some lie made up to scare him and
caused him to lose all the stuff he
had prepared.
ION the night OF the killing he
came home about shutdown and wen 4.
down into the pond to- his beer bay
rel and when supper was called he
did not come. When we were nCarl,
through eating he came in, raising
d row, cursing my mother for every
kind Of thing, saying she had lied
on him and caused him to lose 1
whole lot of money and that he in
tended to kill her before midnight.
He took hold of the coffee pot AMI
started to scald hey and FINALLY she
got him to drink q cup of coffee. All
the family went out of the dining
room except mother and father. Soon
they followed when he kickeI ner
over a table and broke the lamp
chimney. He cursed her and tod
her he would give her two minutes
to sweep up the grass or he would
kill her. They then sat by the fire
after she swept up the glass and he
kept on cursing, and abusing her
for everything he could call her til
he reached up over his head and
took the shotgun out of the rack.
L grabbed the gun and took it
away from him while he was lev cling
it on her. He told her that If src
had anything to say to say 1t as he
was going to kill her. When [ got
the gun [ told mother and my wis
to clear out and she went out into
the yard and father after her. He
picked up a Big stick and | heard
mother cry out in the dark ana say
% Lord, he is going to kill me, and
1 shot at MIN but did not shoot to
kill. lie kept On fighting ih0tn"r,
and had her down, saying he was
going to kill her and L was afraid
to shoot straight at him the second
time fearing [ would kill her and
Aunley. who had come 10 mother S
| help, so the second shot went
astray.
Afraid to Tell Truth
Then [ saw Aunley strike MIN
three times with something and the
last time he struck father he fell Of
of mother on to the ground and She
got up and said, 'O' Lordy, we have
Killed him. I went to the pho re tn
call up my uncle and intended to
| tell him all about it, but when IA
came he was mad, and [ was afraid
to tell him and we decided to deEY
1t. But now 1 am telling you just
how 1T happened. When L got bach
from the neighbours house whtIc
went to the phone, mother tolu nf
father was still alive and for me tc
go after the doctor and l went for
! DR.. Martin.
Gentlemen of the jury, my croth
er and I were protecting our mother
from father who Was drunk and !lGe
said several times he was KONG tt