Show OLD REPORTER R SEEKS TO 70 FREE A LIFE PRISONER sf joe nanzy arrested tor for a kubac WM V cons bitted NI slur cesis ac afo C XA ax kach exalted arc eted over taw ux now of ajam OE MAUZY son ot of an ex sale sheriff of macon county illinois is in locked lock up in the county jail at decatur on the charge of hating murd murdered ered mat mckinley on the night ot of july 3 1889 ephraim faunce is in the penitentiary and has been there nearly nine years tor for the saine same crime yet it is known that only one man committed the murder it is 13 believed that never before in the history of illinois has a similar ewe case occurred joe bauzys father was sheriff at the time faunce famce was tried and sentenced to life imprisonment m tor for the crime and joe mauzy himself m el was turnkey at the jall now joe mauzy will be brought to trial tor for 1 the same crime and an application tor for a pardon tor for faunce will wait on the outcome of the trial public opinion in decatur is almost unanimous that whether or not mamy is guilty faunce should be released from fr the day that he was found guilty many have believed that he was innocent and have wondered how any jury could send him to prison tor for life ou on the evidence against him even the prosecuting officers at the time expressed astonishment at the severity of the sentence the evidence against him with the exception of that of one witness whose character was called into question was largely circumstantial the severe sentence can only ble be 24 counted accounted for by the fact that the defense made for him was handicapped for the want of means his character had been bad and there was nothing to enlist sympathy for him the community was indignant over the murder it wanted to see someone punished and it looked aa it if faunce might have had something to do with the crime since he has been in the penitentiary tent iary many stories about his case have been circulated soon after he was convicted it was reported that the revolver with ahll the murder was committed had turned out to be the revolver of joe macay mac ay the son of the sheriff then it was said that witnesses had been bend fiand who said that they saw the mm mul 1 if r and that faunce did not commit it it seemed however that no one cared to take up the ca case A joe mauzy mauu although known while a young man as a man of bad character frequently in trouble had nevet been charged with a serious crime and ne be had influential connections both socially and politically faunce on the other hand had no one who seemed anxious to help him except his mother she was penniless at different times she has tried to make application for a pardon but could get little evidence and had no money with which to hire attorneys about four years ago two decatur attorneys on an the importunities of his mother looked into the case then took it up because they believed an innocent man tran was in prison they thet va got a good deal ot of evidence and procured letters from the officers connected with the court at the time of the trial before the matter was presented to the governor friends of faunce who do not live in decatur and who professed to have influential friends at springfield took the papers and affidavits that had been prepared to springfield saying that they would have them presented to the governor with backing that would make a pardon certain they were never presented many of EPHRAIM the papers that had been prepared were lost thi the matter was dropped although by this time hund toadied ot of decatur people had come to believe chatan thata an innocent man was in prison for life three months ago muty harry 31 MJ WI wheeler Leeler a reporter on a decaen decatur pa j par that as no one nie else seem ed haely to do anything for faunce ts he did this simply because hea believed faunce was innocent baunee had never been anything toj to j him he barely knew Yaunce before atterb att was sent to the pent penitentiary twy mr wheeler got some of the ia i pe rs aSa etters letters that had haa been prepared when the first arst steps to td getting a tor par ia 1204 1994 fi traced dowa the stories that persons had seen ciona bial he aider daie fahmee boin i ma r ed t sot pa ed etim iid and pat iiii the case aae oretho the board jiga but e ape UM breely V z EA one because the friend of bad neither money nor ability to help the tor for a pardon was presented to the baft state on thursday jn 13 MS 1898 then the ca ease that had bib been laufle ids out nut in tavor of was waa made public tte the result waa a demand tor for an investigation and a more mom pronounced ced expression of opinion by decatur people that was w innocent accompanying the application or pardon were affidavits showing that manzy and not committed WD the murder a history of the case showing the character of the evidence against faunce at the trial letters from wen well known citizens asking that faunce be pardoned and a petition signed by im citizens eit cit ixena izena declaring that they bell believed eTed faunce face innocent and asking that he be released from prison one of the affidavits was by mrs adm rebecca smith who swore that she saw the murder committed and that she saw nunce afterward and knows he did not shoot mckinley she also swore that mrs OU the woman who at the trial swore that shot mckinley MCKI TIley w was not present at all another affidavit was by mrs alfred showers who at the time of the murder was thirteen years old she said she was vm within less than halt half a block of the place of at the murder when she heard a a shot she law a man running from the place and saw him throw a revolver in the tha air that man was joe mauzy with two others who were with her she went at home and told her mother what they had seen and the mother told them to keep still about it or th they would be dragged into the case as witnesses laura aimen a sister of mrs showers who was with mrs showers on the night of the murder made affidavit JOE MAUZY that the statement of mrs showers was true and that it was not faunce that they saw running from the place there were other affidavits tending to show that faunce was innocent and in which the name of mauzy was mentioned but some of these have already been opposed by statements tending to disprove them among the letters was one from judge hughes of mattoon who presided at the trial of faunce he said the evidence against faunce was circumstantial except that mrs oliphant OU a woman of bad repute swore that she saw faunce shoot mckinley he said faunce had a fair trial was well defended and he could not say that there was more than a possibility of the innocence of faunce states attorney isac isa c IL mills ww was not asked for a letter but one that he wrote faunce on aug 14 1895 was presented in it he said he had investigated rumors that mauzy was the murderer and had always concluded that mauzy was not but that faunce was he said 1 I have always alway been inclined to the opinion that it w was his maunys Mauz ys revolver with which the shot was fired but I 1 also am inclined to the belief that you had bad it borrowed from him for use as a watchman a n the states attorney concludes there is a possibility of your innocence two weeks after the evidence and letters were presented to the board of pardons and before it had taken artion action the macon county grand jury took up the investigation of the ease case and concluded by returning an indictment charging joe mauzy with the murder tor for which faunce was serving a life sentence mauzy was arrested at his home on a farm near oakland and brought to decatur and locked up in jail he declares that he be is innocent states attorney mills who was states stales attorney when faunce was convicted hm has asked that friends of faunce appoint an attorney to assist in the prosecution of mauzy A letter has been re calved from fro president R A lemon of the state board of pardons that the decision of the board on the application for pounces Paun cea ces pardon has been deferred until the april meeting of the board that will be after the trial of mauzy which iw i expected to ca come me ap soon mat am mckinley tor for whose murder faunce is iv in prison was wag a young ma an of good character the tae night ot of the murder he was going home about a block from the courthouse conr he heard beard two women across the street cry out as protection from a man who seemed seeded to be following them thelm mckin ley crossed er over told the man ma n to desist from annoying 1 the women and aid was shot dying instantly ong one of the women was mrs smith who now says thattie that the man who did the shooting ng was 0 vauna iannce was arrested tj baars boars later while playing ia ft at a saloon 7 |