Douglas daily dispatch., 1927-03-13


~their lives behind the grim walls OF
the state penitentiary-as their kind
lest fate, six condemned murderers
today stoode northern Illinois aghast
for the second time by spectacular
bid for the freedom they twice had
forfeited. Three of them, Mexicans,
got to Chicago, where the chain of
fortuitous incidents which marked
their escape from the county Jail az
Joliet was broken and two of them
were recaptured, one probably fatally
shot after a pistol fight with de-
tectives. Two of the policemen were
shot, one probably fatally.
The other three, Americans fell
victims of a miscarriage of their
otherwise perfect plans and were
left to vent their disappointed rage
by armed control of the Will county
jail for as long as they wished. Two
women were arrested in Chicago in
. connection with the escape and Ed
ward Gibbons Jail guard who sat
! in front of the Mexicans' cell when
they pushed out the previously saw,
ed bars, and stepped through with
pointed pistols, was severely ar
raigned in the beginning of an In
vestigation. For several weeks the
convicts had been held in Joliet Jail
with the date for their execution
thrice set for the murder of Pete:
Klein, deputy warden at the model
new penitentiary at Statewide, from
which they escaped May s, last.
Twice the day of death was post
poned after all arrangements had
been made for two triple hangings
by stays issued by the trial Judge
and only last week with the execu-
tion set for yesterday, Justice Fred
erick Il. De Young issued writ of
error, citing their case for review by
the high court.
Despite the statement in Chicago
of the recaptured Roberto Torrez,
that the bars were sawed last mid;
night, they apparently had been pre-,
rared some time ago for the break
for liberty, which, it was believed
had been timed for the night before
the execution after all avenues OF
hope had been closed. Then ap4
rarently believing that the best that
could come of the review of their
case by the supreme court, would be
few months more of life, possibly
sentence OF death, or at best life
to put into effect their plans for
escape.
Twanging a guitar or playing
ment to native folk songs, the Mex
leans had drowned the scraping OF
the steel upon steel as one of them
rol 4
he knelt apparently in prayer be-
fcre improvised altar seemingly un,
der the urge Of a newly acquired
religion. Then shortly before dawn
today two of them crept into the
corridor outside their cells, cover
ed'' twoa4guards on duty there, with
pistols, and gagged them and tied
them, standing, to the cell bars.
Four other guards and deputy
sheriff silently were stolen upon un-
til finally the night force had been
corralled and left standing spread
eagled and gagged against cross
barred cells.
Then came the, to them, most
untoward incident. The key to the
cell of the Americans they had exe
rected to find on one of the guards
was locked safe in the Jail safe.
Tossing pistols into the cell of the
men who were sentenced to die with
them the Mexicans shouted an
"Adios" and dashed to the back yard
of the Jail
There, their star of hope shining
brightest, they encountered John
Rrincich, deputy sheriff, with his
automobile. They impressed him as
chauffeur and in the next 80 minutes
dashed so miles over rain-greased
concrete highways to Indiana Har-
Dor, Ind, which boasts of large
Mexican settlement. There the motor
car was smashed and abandoned, and
still taking krincich with them they
forced a taXicab to race with them
to corner in southeast Chicago
near which one of the escaped con-
victs knew relatives lived. Mean
while the alarm had been spread
from Joliet and Chicago policemen
and detectives had rushed to the
outskirts of town.
Careening wildly through the night
the Communicated taxicab was spied
by Sergeant John Klaske of the de-
tective bureau and two men of his
squad. Klashe forced the wildly
racing taXicab to the curbing, and
at that moment the Mexicans opened
fired.
George Grant, shot through the
abdomen, and probably fatally
wounded and William Frost shot in
the arm and leg, were put out of the
fight and klaske alone was left.
The Mexicans leaped from their taxi
cab and ran. Klaske took careful
aim and dropped Cregario Rizo with
bullet just under the heart He@
probably will die.
In the fusillade the chauffeur OF
the stolen taxicab, John Marciniak,
23 was shot in the leg.
Krincich, the hostage guard from
Joliet cried out not to shoot him,
ana luckily, was missed entirely al
though caught in the direct path or
fire between Klaske and the Mexi
cans.
The district was combed by squads
of detectives and policemen and 20
minutes later Torrez was arrested,
with two other MeXicans as he
audaciously walked from a house