Evening star., 1928-11-21
Jury MAY RECEIVE
SMITH CASE TODAY
District Alienist Declares
Man Who Killed Daughter
Is Not Normal.

The fate of Franklin Ellsworth Smith,
slayer of his 19-year-old daughter, Bes-
sic L. Smith, probably will be placed in
the hands of the jury late this after
noon. Smith has been on trial for
the last three days with insanity as his
plea to escape the death penalty for
his crime.
DR.. Percy D. Hickling, District alien
ist, on the stand this morning, ad-
mitted that Smith is not normal and
belongs to that large class that neither
is normal nor insane, and comes under
what is known to alienists as one of
those in a constitutional psychopathic
state
He declared that Smith was of sound
mind September Is, the day he killed
his daughter, was responsible for his
actions, had appreciation Of right and
wrong. and was possessed Of the will
and ability to refrain from committing
the crime If he had so desired.
Defense Rests Case.
The defense rested its case at IL
o'clock this morning after the testi-
mony of DIR. Roger S. Cohen, alienist,
formerly connected with st. Eliza
abeth's Hospital, who declared he had
formed the opinion that Smiths mind
was unsound following an examination
of the slayer November Is.
DR.. Cohen said Smith spoke OF his
crime with amazing frankness and
talked as though he didn't realize the
magnitude of it. DR.. Cohen said
further he noticed Smith during his
examination that the man showed a
certain amount of satisfaction in deal
ing with the more Sordid details of his
life.
DR.. Cohen, like DR.. Kenneth w. Kin
ney, alienist, who testified for the de-
fense yesterday, could not definitely
classify the nature of the mental disease
from which they said Smith is suffer-
ing.
In rebuttal to the testimony of de-
fenSe witnesses presented yesterday,
Assistant District Attorney william H.
Collins, who is prosecuting the first
degree murder charge against Smith,
called several witnesses, who testified
that from their observations of the man
since his arrest on the day of the slay-
ing they considered him mentally
sound and responsible for his actions.
These witnesses were Sergt. Joseph
Waldron, headquarters detective; Sergt.
Thomas F. Sweeney, headquarters de-
tectiye; Sergt. John Flaherty, headquar-
ters detective, and Edward Turnure,
guard Of the District jail.
HickIing Hits Alienists.
DR.. Hickling told the jury he ex-
amined Smith two days after the crime
and later october 4. He said that in
the first examination Smith related to
him that he killed his daughter on the
impulse of the moment.
Smith seemed" Dr. Hickling said,
Ito give the proper weight to ali of his
statements to me concerning the Slay-
ing. He was in a highly depressed
state, but this was perfectly natural
considering the position of the man.
have found this depressed state to be
the rule rather than the exception in
cases of this sort or where homicide
has been committed"
He added he found Smiths mind
highly efficient in its field of work,
which was bookkeeping and accounting
until he was forced by failing eyesight
to leave that work.
DR.. Hickling indirectly scored the
testimony of the two alienists who had
testified for the defense. He said In
diagnosing mental diseases the pSychi-
artist in all cases, If he has made a
thorough study of his subject, should
be able to put the mind Of the man un-
der observation into one Of the particu-
lar classifications of insanity. This
n NN-H 81
to do under cross-eXamination by Mr..
Collins, he said.
A defense witness, Mrs. Lyla Dow Of
the Episcopal City Mission, character
lied the man as garrulous, extremely
nervous and of mixed emotions.