The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-02-29
AK MURDER CASE GETS UNDER WAY,
 TAKE TESTIMONY
Two Witnesses Are Ar rested On Perjnry
 CharRe

Arrest of ..Baby Doll's Hearn sand Sandy Lenior, negroes, important wit lesses for the defense, on charges of perjury, featured the trial Thursday of Peyton Johnson, charged with the mnr- der with in axe of John Robert Turner January 6, 1923. <. These two witnesses we're ordered taken into custody immediAtely after l Assistant Solicitor J. F. Mccoy ob- tained from the defendant Statements showing that their testimony, given | early Thnrsday mornins,, was false. All of Thursday was consumed in 1 the testimony of witnesses, which was |completed just before adjonfnment in the afternoon. Argument of attorneys Twin begin Friday morning and is ex- pected to require all day. Judge 1T. F. Heflin is expected to give the case to the j.ry late Friday afternoon. Sfar Witnsss
 Mary Frances Sanders was the first witness to take the. stand Thursday morning, being subpoenaed as the star witness for the prosecution. She testi- fled that Peyton Johnson, the defend- ant, Odeli Jackson, Pearl Jackson, Ed Jackson, negroes, and several other ne- eroes, including herself, were gambling 1 in Johnson's room on the night of the alleged murder, and that early in the evening she, Odell Jackson, and Peyton Johnson were obliged to quit the game because their money gave out. She added that Odell Jackson, who is also under indictment charged with murder, suggested that they go out and 'sget' some white men frequenfinE the homes of negro women. Johnson then asked them to s.wait ninute, she testified, and soon returned with rope which he had taken from a trunk in the rp6m which slle, the wifuess. promptly 2i<les,< &<t d .f1He t6oH1z z<z W s1ff. MeUpy. Shc said it was Inch suTEest- ed that they go to the home of Lillie Belle, who was also found seriously wounded at the same time Turner's body was found. She said the defend ant Odell Jackson and Pearl Jackson left the house, and that she and the others were later that night arrested and carried q jail charged with gam bling but made bond immediately and returned to the house. .t- Describes Return.
 The witness then described the re- turn of the trio about o'clock and said Odell Jackson remarked in her hearing, "We got the white men but don't think we got the wOman," plans being made to continue their
 'skulling" later. She testified that the next morning she found an axe in asi outhOuse and was warned by Jack son not to tell anybody about it on penalty of death.
 An attempt was made by the next witness, Baby DolP' Hearn, who was placed in jail later for perjury, to dis credit her testimony. She said she and the other woman went to Beaumont, Texas, the Sunday before Christmas and were away from Birmingham about three weeks, or until after the murder was committed. She testified that she met Sandy Lenoir, a negro acquaint- ance in New Orleans on the way back, and he later was placed on the witness stand to eorroborate her statement Lenoir was also arrested later for perjury.
 Denies Charge
 F When placed on the witness stand, Johnson, the defendant, denied his guilt and said he knew nothing of the murder until another negro, Virgil Price, read an account of it to him the next morning from a newspaper. Price, who followed him on the wit ness stand, said he did not remember reading such an account to anybody. The defendant also testified that Sandy Lenoir, who had previously stated that he had seen the two negro women in New Orleans, was in his b0otblack stand on the day of the murder.
 No attempt was made by either the defense or the prosecution to in- troduce confessions or other statements obtained through the use of sc6pola- mine. or truth serum, and Assistant Solicitor Mccoy said he did not intend to bring such evidence into the trial.
 Johnson is represented by Luther Patrick, George Frye and Thomas Roe. Assistant Solicitors J. P. Mccoy and U. NJ. Long are handling the prosecu-