Show WAS IT MURDER SOME bome inquiry has arisen concerning the degree of guilt to be attached in law to tho the captured robbers who killed young joel hinckley Hin cey it is thought by some persons that as the homicide was in all probability unintentional the prisoners cannot be punished with the espital capital penalty others think that taking all the circumstances into consider consideration atlon allon the culprits committed murder and ought to suffer death we will briefly examine the case casey not with any intent to prejudge the guilt or innocence or the accused or to state beforehand what should shoulder or should not be done with them but to exhibit the affair in its true light the two men went to the place where the offense wag was committed for the purpose of burglary or robbery they went with a loaded weapon pre pared to take life if necessary to the accomplishment of their purpose po S e they may not have intended to kill but had bad the implement in readiness to kill their intent was felonious if not homicidal we pre sun sune e no noone one will dispute that a loaded pistol pointed at young hinckley while they were thus feloniously engaged hy by one of the robbers off and killed hinck ley on the spot was this murder if BO so in what degree if it was not murder what is the clasa elms of the i of nence fence and how may it be pu punished n murder is defined in our statutes to bethe be the unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought but the malice may be express or implied it is implied when no considerable provocation appears or when the circumstances att inding the killing show an abandoned or malignant heart homicide Is excusable when ed by accident in doing a lawful act by lawful means manslaughter is the unlawful killing of a human being without t malice but I 1 it t is voluntary or involuntary voluntary when done in the heat of passion pass ionin lonin voluntary involuntary when in the per firmance for manee mance of a lawful act or of an un lawful act not amounting to a felony it will be seen from this that the shooting in question comes cornea under the head of murder now as to the degree our penal code provides chevery very murder committed in the perpetration of or at tempt to perpetrate any arson rape burglary burglar 0 or ir robbery or perpetrated pet rated by any act greatly dangerous to the lives of others and evidencing a depraved mind regardless of human life is murder in the first degree sec 89 rhe the penalty for murder in the ibe first degree is death or the con convict vict may on becom recommendation mec men dation of the jury be imprisoned for life if the killing of a human being while the slayer is committing an in unlawful act is to be regarded in the light of a mere accident one of the strongest safeguards erected by the law will be broken down our statutes are in accor ac corance ance witti well known and long established legal principles A person who attempts an unlawful act and proceeds further than he intended is responsible for all his doings and their results confession of guilt turning states evidence or other palliative proceedings may have weight with a jury and the court and materially affect the sentence but it cannot we think be successfully disputed that such a homicide as occurred at franklin was murder mur derand and that it was a capital offense offence ence it was a terrible affair and while no one desirus that the murderers shall be punished be yond vond their deserts yet justice should have its own and the laws enacted for the preservation of human life should be fully vindicated |