Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-10-12
RESULT Of PROBE
WILL DETERMINE
DAYTON CHARGE
Clues Pointing to Premedita-
ton Being Investigated
by District Attorney.
MYSTERIOUS TELEPHONE
CALL is BEING TRACED
Reports That Girls Wrists Were
Broken Denied by Coro-
ner's Physician.

Whether the grand jury will be asked
to bring first-degree murder charge
against Dexter Dayton, the young in
surance salesman who has confessed to
strangling the girl he loved, rests on
further investigation by the District at
torney's Office Of clues pointing to pre-
meditation on Dayton's part.
Indications now are that the grand
jury win receive the case about the mid
die of next week The Police Depart
ment has virtually completed its inquiry,
although Arthur Lambert, assistant Dis
trict attorney in charge of the case. said
today there were several phases still un-
der investigation.
Trace Mysterious Call.
A mysterious telephone call. nut
through between IL and IL o'clock
Monday night from the Roosevelt Hotel
room in which the body of Marjorie
ODonnel was found early Wednesday
Is being traced in the hope it may
throw some light on the murder.
Police believe that someone outside
the hotel talked to the dead girl or to
Dayton few hours before the young
AAAol1 save way W u III u Jealous rage
and chOked the girl with his own hands.
The words and manner OF either the
man or girl may have an important
bearing on whether Dayton is to be
charged with premeditated murder.
Reports that the girls wrists were
broken were denied yesterday by the
coroner's physician who performed the
autopsy. The police today said they
attached no importance to the report.
While authorities continued to sift
the evidence In the case, the body Of
Marjorie O,Donnell yesterday was COM
mitted to a grave in Cavalry Cemetery,
Pittsburgh, in the presence of her I'M
mediate family and two priests.
The burial service was read, and 10
minutes after the small funeral party
had entered the cemetery it moved out
again. Relatives said the girls father,
John O'Donnell, q newspaper editor,
and two Of the girls sisters went to
ODonnells home at Oil City, Pa,
after the ceremony.
The result of the police investigation
Of Dayton's story that he bought the
gun. found in his room at the hotel,
Immediately after coming to washing
ton has been transmitted to the Dis
trict attorneys Office. Mr.. Lambert,
however. declined to say If 1t strength
ened the generalization theory. Dayton
has been quoted by police as insisting
he bought the gun many months before
he met the girl, from second hand
shop.
Plea Of Emotional Insanity.
It was learned through defense att
torneys. Daniel z. Ring and Harvey L.
Cobb, that Dayton's defense, should he
be brought to trial on a grand jury
charge of murder, viii be temporary
emotional insanity, superinduced BY
drink
Dayton declares he has a vague menu
DRY of hearing the girl taunt him,
whereupon things went red" He In
siSts he cannot recall what happened
Immediately after that, and only re-
gained his mental faculties when the
struggle was over and when he was ly-
ing quietly beside the girl on one Of
twin beds.
The young insurance salesman has
been closely watched since he was ad-
mitted to the District jail Thursday
afternoon. Dependent and remorseful.
he PAGES his cell In view Of guards who
fear he may attempt TO commit suicide.
Dayton attempted suicide, he says.
while sitting beside the body Of the
girl, but lost his nerve and could not
pull the trigger Of his gun again after
the gun had snapped once.