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In Two Peninsulas

In Two Peninsulas image
Parent Issue
Day
6
Month
September
Year
1895
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

An atternpt is being made to secure the pardon of the alleged Molitor murderers who were sentenced froni Alpena county last y car to Jackson prison for life. The pi-isoners are August Grosmann, August Fuhrinann, Henry Jacobs, Cari Vogeler and Wm. Kepke. It will be remembered that these men were convicted of killing Albert Molitor at Hogers City on the nig-ht of Aug-ust 25, 1875, and it was priucipally ou the confession of Wm. Repke- who, after nearly 20 years, says that his conscience troubled him - that the convictions were secured. Repke novv makes aftidavit that the evidence he gave was false. He further represents that he was induced to swear falsely upon the trial upon the assurance that by doing so he would free himself. He further says that at the time of the first confession he was intoxicated and afterward desired to withdraw his confession, but was not allowed to do so. In the case oL Henry Jacobs, the defense attempted to prove an alibi on the trial. It was shown that the wife of the accuscd gave birth to a child on August 27, 1875, two days after the murder of Molitor, and that for several days previous thereto Jacobs had been detained at home by his wife's illness. Attorney-General EÏlis wasconducting the prosecution and it is now alleged that he controvertid this testimony in Jacobs' defense by sharp practice. During the closing hours of the trial he introduced a certified copy of the county clerk's record whieh showed that the child was bom in 1876, a year after the murder. But now Joseph Smith, ex-county clerk, makes affidavit that theve was an entry of the birth of the child for both 1875 and 1876, but the church records and the testimony of the neighbors show that the latter entrj' was erroneous. Nevertheless, Ellis directttd ïSmith to makea certified copy of the latter entry and return the record to RogersCity, thus preventing the defense from meeting this evideuce before the close of the trial.

Article

Subjects
Ann Arbor Argus
Old News