Evening star., 1961-09-01
ReesAttorney
Seeks 10 Bar
Gun and Note
Court in Virginia
Receives Motion
Against Evidence

SPOTSYLVANIA, Va, Sept.
l (AP).-Defense lawyers today
fought to keep two items of
evidence which could spell life
or death for Melvin Davis aees,
jr., from reaching the jury
which will try him for murder
later this month.
Alfred w. Garnett, one of
Rees' two court-appointed at
torneys, contended in a motion
filed before Spotsylvania. Cir
cult Judge John D. Butzner,
jr.. that the contents of an
accordion case - including a
.38-caliber pistol and a hand
written note-Should be ex-
cluded from evidence en- The
ground they were "unlawfully
obtained"
The State, objecting 20 the
move, Immediately called an
FBI agent to the stand to de-
scribe the circumstances under
which the case was seized on
June "a, 1869, from the home
OF Rees' parents in HyattS-
vile, Md.
The agent, Francis x. jain,
testified the defendants father
signed a statement giving
agents permission to search the
house and take any property
found inside. The younger
Rees at that time was in West
Memphis, Ark, where he was
arrested earlier the same day.
Both the gun and the hand
written note are considered i'm
portant in the States expected
attempt to obtain the death
penalty for Rees, 80, on a
charge of Staying Carroll v.
jackson, jr.,, of Apple Grove.
The revolver has been
matched by an FBI laboratory
specialist to a pistol handle grip
found near Mr.. JackSon'S body
at an abandoned Sawmill site
on March 4, 1859. ReeS is Sched-
uled to go on trial here for Mr..
Jackson's Staying on Septem-
ber 18.
Also in the accordion case
was a one-page note purport-
edly describing the last hours
of Mr.. Jackson and three other
members of his family who
were slain after being kid
mapped from Louisa County on
January II, 1859.
The body Of Mr.. Jackson's
daughter, Janet, ~, was found
beneath his own. The bodies of
the two other victims, Mrs. Mil
dred jackson. 27, and daughter
Susan, 5, were found at Gam
Drills. Md.
The gun was the Govern
ment's chief evidence in obtain
ing a life sentence against Rees
in Maryland's District Federal
Court last winter for the death
Of Mrs. jackson and Susan. The
Federal judge who presided in
that trial permitted introduc-
ton of the gun but rejected
Government efforts to admit
the note.
Mr.. jain told the court he
and another agent went to the
home of ReeS' parents to in
form the elder Rees of his sons
arrest as well as to conduct a
search of the residence. ReeS
at that time had been charged
only with the 1857 Staying of a
Fort Belvoir clerk, Mrs. Mar
garet Harold, at Gambrills, but
Mr.. jain said he informed the
elder Rees that the FBI was in
terested In possibly linking the
son with a number of murder
cases.
He said he did not name the
other cases at that time, but
today said the FBI's interest
in Rees involved five cases,
land the Jackson case was
among them"
Under croSs-examination, Mr..
jain said agents searched the
premises with a number of
items of possible evidence in
mind. One was a .22-caliber
rifle. This weapon has at no
time figured in the Jackson
case. However, Rees also was
known to be under investiga-
ton at that time in the 1856
rifle Staying of two girls near
College Park, Md. A small cali
ber rifle was used in that case.