Imperial Valley press., 1929-01-02
MRS. N0RTHC0TT
ACCEPTS GUILT
FOR ALL CRIMES
Sons Trial Starts AT
Riverside With Judge
Disqualified.
By United Press Leased Wire

san OF tENTIN PRISON, Jan.
2.-CalIing Warden James Holohan
to her cell in the women 5 quarters
Of San Quentin prison today, Mrs.
Sarah Louise NoIthcott handed him
the following telegram:
Deputy District Attorney Seav-
cy, Los Angeles.
~ confess all of the crimes my
son is charged with. Louise North
cott. -
RIVERSIDE. Calf, Jan. 2.-su-
pcrior Judge o. H. Morton disqual-
flied himself and was succeeded by
Presiding Judge George X. Freeman
at the opening Of the murder trial
Of Gordon S Northcott here today.
Judge Morton denied prejudice as
charged by the defense but con
scntcd to withdraw to cXpediatc
court action in the case. Judge
| Freeman took the, b4nch at the
stipulation Of tha defense and
prosecution.
The procedure was somewhat sim
liar to that of the notorious William
i Edward Hickman trial for the kid
naping and murder Of Marion Par
] kcr in Los Angeles.
In the Hickman case after Su-
! pcrior Judge Hardy disqualified
for prejudice, Judge J. j. Trabucco
was named to replace him ON the
j bench.
Northcott will go to trial for the
slayings Of at least three and pos
Sibly four Southern California BOYS.
Under the original court calendar
i he would answer to the deaths Of
/ Lewis and Nelson WinSlow, - and
/ Q, of Pomona, and an unidentified
Mexican. The district attorney 5
! office intended however, to ask that
/ he also be tried at the some time
! for the murder of nine year old
! Walter Collins.
The plan to try all four counts
/ at one time followed the action of
his mother, Mrs. Sarah L. Northcott
! in pleading guilty to an indictment
charging her with aiding her SON in
killing Young Collins. She now is
at San Quentin serving life term.
Northcott already has pleaded no,
guilty to the four murders but con
fused rumorS just before court open
ed said that he might either plead
guilty or tHrn to insanity as a de-
/ fcnse
The accused ax-slayer last night
! INDUCED in one of his customary
J .+ I, +,,ll .,F
he killed ''Scvcral boys and
pointed ont ON map the places
! where he buried the bodies. He also
said he "might plead guilty.
Today he denied he had made any
confession or that he even indicat-
| ed he might plead guilty.
! May Plead Insanity
He followed Il SIMILAR course some
weeks ago when he wrote I'm admis-
| sion of the slaying Of the unidcnti-
! fled Mexican, confessed orally to
! eight others, and then laughed at
/ deputy sheriffs after he persuaded
! them to dig for the bodies in a half
a dozen places over the Moiave
desert in spots he pointed out as the
! burial ground.
Northcott's attorney, Norbert Sa-
way, said today that an insanity
! defense "was considered. He de
clined to 90 into the matter any
deeper or to say definitely that an
attempt would be made to prove
the defendant insane.
The court of Superior Judge O. X.
Morton was completely filled when
Northcott entered for the trial open
ing. he chamber was the one in
which 1iS mother unexpectedly CON
fcsSe% TO hacking Young Collins to
death with an AK and in which the
life imprisonment term was passed
ON her.
In her confession, Mrs. Northcott
attempted to clear her son in the
Collins death.
She said She killed the boy after
he was injured fatally by Sanford
Clark, nephew and accuscr of North