Evening star., 1923-08-14
GRUESOME EXHIBITS
SHOWN AT KEPNER TRIAL

CONTINUED from First Page.)
already shaking nerves completely
shattered AS DIR. McCurdy got into
his testimony he lifted parts of the
skull off to show the court how the
autopsy over Mrs. kepner. which he
had characterized as "bungled,' had
proceeded
By this time the exodus of men,.
women and fiappers had become 50
general the clerk was obliged TO rap
for order several times and once the
court itself waited until a score or
more persons who had risen stimuli
tancously and departed. Dr. Nc
Curdy declared under direct cXamin-
alton that the head of Mrs. kepner
had been terribly mutilated by the
autopsists and he created a sensation
when he added that instead of plac-
ing the brain back in the head after
their examination they had kept it
and filled the skull with newspapers
they found lying around the floor.
Proof Destroyed.
II do not believe any man can say
with indisputable accuracy" DR.. Nc
Curdy asserted, that the bullet
which killed Mrs. Kepner entered
her head from the left side: Had the
autopsy been properly performed
even a layman could have determined
that point. but job was so bungled
that the indisputable proof was alb
solutely destroyed and the operators
sawed directly through the bullet
hole on the right side"
When a dispute occurred between
Mr.. Weinberg and Assistant Attorney
General Lindsay {. Spencer. who is
helping the prosecution, over the ad
instability of certain. testimony. the
former served notice for the first time
that he. may ask the court 10, again
have the body of Mrs. Kepner eX-
humed. submitted to another exam
| ination and prove beyond the shadow
of doubt whether his medical eX
perts or those produced by the state
are right.
The defense began to spring its sur
prise witness this morning with the
calling Of DR.. Joseph d, Rogers Of
Washington. n. G.. former assistant
coroner of that city. At the outset
however, pr. Rogers testimony was
hurt by the court refusing to let him
discuss the previous testimony Of DIR
MaldieS. who performed the autopsy
over Mrs kepner. and Or. McCurdy.
on the ground that they had dis
greed. Only. by discussing their
statements could Dr. Rogers hope to
combat the theory OF murder.
Other GruesOme Exhibits.
Like DR.. McCurdy. Dr. Rogers
brought with him suspicious looking
packages. the very sight % which
turned the stomachs of spectators aft
er seeing the gruesome exhibits Of
the previous half hour. a shudder
ran around the room as he held up a
scalpel and showed how it would be
used to remove part CT the skull.
produced saws. chains. forceps and
scissors that are all part of a sur
geOn's tools. He described minutely
their uses.
"It is my opinion. beyond the
shadow of a doubt" said )r Rogers.
! that the wound described on the
right side of Mrs. Kepner's head was
caused by the bullet from an auto
matte entering from that point" To
impress the court with this theory.
how a pistol ball would shatter the
skull of human being at its point
of ingreSs and at its point of egress.
Cross-examination of kepner was
completed at 9:55 o'clock this morn
| ing. Immediately before the defense
began to call in its medical experts
AS in yesterdays testimony, the pris-
oner time and again corrected the
statements he had made before the
coroner's jury. He could not remem-
ber having said on that occasion that
he gave no instructions regarding the
burning of his wife's clothes. nor tha
he had said she had nagged him
States Attorney Anders. however
read such statements to him from the
| official record taken at the inquest.
Kepner Income sI5.OOO.
| Asked as to his income. Mr. Kepner
said it amounted to from $4,000 to
$4,000 year. Closely interrogated,
however. he could not remember what
amount he paid income tax on. and
/ later admitted it was possibly for
about $4,000 OF $4,000. When asked
| by Judge Edward C. Peter. one of the
trial judges. whether he had paid by
check Kepner could not remember
but said he guessed he did,
| Just before Kepner left the stant
| Judge Peters again interrogated him
| this time regarding his dead wife.
! jewelry. When" the jurist demand
! ed. did you search for your wife!
| jewelry?" Three or four times Kep
| ner gave what appeared TO be evasiv,
, answers. but the judge persisted il
! a direct answer, and kepner then sale
| he thought 1t was the next morning
! Judge Peter also demanded to know
| why he had rented room in Fred
| erick for Lulu Ricketts,, the clandes
tine affinity.
Miss Ricketts, called me up from
| Hagerstown," was the response. "anC
| told me she had had some trouble a
the place where she lived in Freder
! ick. She asked me to find room TO
| her and 1 did so. l gave my owl
| name when l rented it, yes. sir"
Went to Town to Rest.
Under further examination Kepne
told the court that the reason h
| went to his town house the morning
Of the day his wife was murdered
was to take d nap after painful ex
perience with his dentist in Balti
| more. He said he slept for abou
fifteen minutes between IL and
o'clock. but admitted that 1t wa!
not his habit to do that Throughou
This. testimony he was considerably
more, composed than yesterday. al
| though he was extremely nervou!
and hesitated over many answers
The state also drew out that oi
June "a, less than a week after Mrs
Kepner was shot to death, Kepne
had gone to DR.. McCurdy's and OBJ
tained a prescription for a nerve toni
and a mild sedative."
: Both OF the defense's medical wit
nesses, however. were obliged to rel,
upon the testimony of DR. McCurd,
j as the basis for their ASSUMPTIONS AM