The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1925-04-08
Officer Testifies

permitted to answer.
Officer Testifies
Sergt. Tooley. next witness. said
he obtained a statement from Black
burn at the defendants home follow
ing the shooting. He said the re-
volver was found in Crown Hill
cemetery south of Thirty Eighth st.
he said one empty shell was in the
weapon.
Upon cross-examination Tooley
said Blackburn told him that he
struck one Of two men who had
assaulted and attacked Smith Mar
tin. He said Blackburn told him
he struck one of the men in the face
with his revolver that it exploded.
Blackburn told Tooley he did not
know any one had been shot.
John Martin SRI, father of the
murdered youth, was called to the
stand to testify that his son was a
graduate of Shortridge High School.
James G. Campbell 321 E. Fall
Creek Blvd, a student at the In
diana Law School, VINO is employed
at the postoffice, said he heard the
shot. After looking over his shoulder
Campbell almost ran to the dance
hail." he said.
Campbell testified Blackburn put
the gun into his pocket and started
to walk away.
Orla Woody, 1903 Central Ave,
was the first State witness called.
Cross examination by Robinson
brought the name Of Miss Reddlck
in the testimony.
Robinson asked Woody II Lyness
did not say to Miss Reddick when
she came up to the automobile in
which Martin was to be taken to
the hospital: You are not going.
You are the cause Of It ALL"
Woody said he met Martin, Lynes
and Dewey Wilson, 4016 College
Ave-. at the Hume Mansur Bldg,
the night Of the fatal shooting.
Lyness, he said. was to meet Miss
Reddick at the Athenaeum, where
u dance was being held.
They drove to the Athenaeum.
Woody said. in Lyness' car and
when they arrived, he said he and
Wilson went to the Murat theater.
Woody said the KIT time he saw
Martin was after the shooting.
II found Martin on his knees.
with his head on the running board
of Lyness' car. Lyness said: John
is shot I took hold Of John and
tried to make him stand up. Fail
ing, we placed him in the rear seat
and Lyness got in the back and held
his head. Wilson and / got in the
front seat to drive to city hospital"
Remy called three witness Tues
day. They were Arnold Lyness, 81,
of lis L. Fall Creek Blvd, the young
man who accompanied Martin into
the Athenaeum; DR.. William A.
Doeppers. deputy coroner. who ex-
amined Martin after he died, and
JamesH. Harris of Charlottesville,
Ind, a Wabash College student, who
the dance.
Admits Drinking
Lyness created a sensation when
he admitted upon cross examination
by Arthur Robinson. defense coun-
sci. that he and Martin had been
drinking.
Robinson's attempt to get Lyness
to say he or Martin struck at Black
burn was futile. Lyness also said
Martin was unarmed and possessed
no weapons.
When Remy quizzed Harris,
the next witness, as to wheth-
err there were any intoxicated
persons at the dance, Robinson OBJ
jected and was sustained by the
court. He said he didn't see any
scuffle between Blackburn and Mar
tin and Lyness, but that everything
there was noisy and clamorous. He
said he saw no blows struck.
Position in Doubt
Remy endeavored to prove that
Blackburn was standing in front of
Martin and fired as Martin assembled
the steps. The defense denies Black
burn was at a distance from Martin.
Defense attorneys allege Blackburn
and Martin had an alteration and
the gun accidentally discharged
when Blackburn struck Martin on
the left side of the face with it.
DIR. Doeppers said the way the
bullet entered the body indicated
q
when fired at Martin. However, he
admitted the gun may have been
held in a horizontal position when
fired and that when the bullet struck
the shoulder bone it was caused to
defect and range downward. The
coroner also said that since the
bullet struck the bone it would be
"A nj IL