Evening star., 1928-10-22
ROBERTSON GOES
ON TRIAL FOR LIFE
Bethesda Contractor Charged
With Killing Edward L.
Mills Near Rockville.
BY staff Correspondent of The Star.

By a staff Correspondent of The Star.
FREDERICK, Md, october "a
Surrounded by his wife, his five small
children and four attorneys. Samuel T.
Robertson, Bethesda building contractor,
went on trial for his life in Frederick
County Circuit Court here today. He is
charged with first degree murder in the
killing on July Z, 1927, of Edward L.
Mills, Rockville dairy farmer, who was
shot to death at daybreak on his farm
near Hunting Hill.
Moving with traditional speed, the
court had completed impanelling of a
jury by 1880 o'clock. after 81 others
had been rejected by the defense, prose-
cution or court.
Robertson was brought to Frederick
early this morning from Rockville, where
he had been in jail since his arrest
nine months after the shooting he
was dressed in a light gray suit and
wore white collar and white tie.
No Unusual Interest Shown.
No unusual interest in the trial was
manifested by the residents of Fred
erick. A few people we're lettering in
the corridors when court convened, but
there were at least a score of vacant
seats in the courtroom. Several men,
bers of the Mills family were seen in
the courtyard before the trial started,
but none entered the courtroom.
The interest of the spectators tenn
porarily was diverted from the case
this morning when Robertson'S two
year-old daughter, Onabel Fay, put on
her fathers hat and toddled over IN
front of the jury box, where she stood
for several minutes looking inquiringly
at the men in whose hands her fathers
fate rests.
Mrs. Robertson, when she saw the
child, went after her and tried to take
the hat away. The baby objected so
strenuously that the mother took her
out of the courtroom and left her in
the yard with two older children.
Three Jurors Excused.
When nine jurors had been selected.
the defense had exhausted II of the
20 peremptory challenges permitted,
while the State had excused seven OF
its allotted 10. Three prospective ju-
rors were excused by the court, two Of
them because they were opposed to
capital punishment and the other be-
cause he said he had alreadv flrnej
on opinion in the case.
The interest of the spectators was
aroused when the first of the proSpec-
tive jurors, Frederick j. Brandenberg,
was called. In response to questions by
Judge Hammond Urner, he said that he
had never come to any radical con-
clusions in the case, and didn't re-
member having read anything about 1t
in the newspapers"
Judge Urner questioned him for five
minutes and attempted to secure def
mite statement from him as to whether
he had already formed an opinion and
excused him when Brandenburg insisted
that he didn't know whether he had
or not.
Members of jury.
The following men have been selected
as members Of the jury: James II.
Hildebrand, John S. Long. Charles D.
Wood, Charles F. Rothenhoefer, Charles
Joseph A. Kaufman. Elias e. Shipley,
Murray @. Boone, Claude C.. Lewis and
j. William Gaver.
Mills was shot by a man described as
being dressed in dark clothing and
wearing a black moustache, in plain
view Of Clarence Miles, l9-year-old
farm hand. Mills had just left his dairy
and was walking In pasture when the
stranger stepped from clump OF
bushes and approached him. Miles said
he saw them exchange words, after
which Mills assailant drew a revolver
from his pocket and fired flve shots.
After the victim had fallen, the stran-
ger stopped over and pinned a crudely
typewriter note on his clothing and
then ran through the woods.
So far as is known the State has only
the evidence of two marked shells
found beside the body and a type
writer taken from Robertson's home
after his arrest on which to base its
case.
Arrested After Fight,
On April I6 Robertson went to the
home of Wilson Trout and engaged III
alteration with the latter. The next
day he went to police with a revolver |
which he said he had taken away from |
Trout. Examination Of the weapon |
disclosed that it made the same firing |
marks as the one used IN the killing Of |
Mills. Trout told police that Robert
son owned the weapon himself, aid the |
latter was arrested After his arrest a
typewriter was found in his home
which is said to be identical with the
one used in tipping the note which was
found after the shooting. Robertson's
attorneys say he has receipt to show
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