Press: Jackson's Sentenced

Oxford Eagle, January 16, 1902

IN SHADOW OF GALLOWS
Whit Owens, Will Mathis and Orlando Lester To Hang on Friday, February 14^th.
While Bill Jackson Goes to the Penitentiary for Life and His Brother, George Jackson Will Have Two Years in Prison to Meditate Over the Crime of November 16^th. Judge Lowrey Passed Sentence on Mathis and Lester Friday and on Owens. Yesterday ~~A Solemn Scene in the Court-Room When Their Fate was Heard.

The trial of Bill Jackson for the murder of John A. Montgomery began at 8:30 o’clock Thursday morning, the jury having been completed the day before.

District Attorney Roane, Hons. J. C. Wilson and C. L. Sivley rep. represented the prosecution and Hons. J. H. Kimmons and J. E. Holmes the defense. The first witness called for the State was Deputy United States Marshal Frank Matthews, who testified to having sent John A. And Hugh Montgomery to arrest Will Mathis. Dan Welch and Mrs. Welch, neighbors of Mathis, testified to finding the two charred bodies of the Montgomerys in the ashes of Mathis burned house.

Edgar Welch, also a neighbor testified that he had stopped at Mathis’ house about dark on the evening of the killing and that Bill Jackson was there and remained after Welch left. The negro, Orlando Lester, testified substantially the same as in his own case and at Mathis’ trial. He stated that Mathis shot Hugh Montgomery and that Bill Jackson shot John A. Montgomery, and the that he, (Lester) had taken the lamp into the room where the officers had gone to bed to get some corn cobs for stoppers to the bottles of whisky Mathis had sold Jackson.

Mrs. Mathis was first called before the defense, and stated that Lester did the shooting and that Jackson left the house and premises before the Montgomerys went to bed.

Mathis, when placed on the stand, testified that Jackson had gone home before the shooting occurred.

Bill Jackson, the accused, testified that he was over at Mathis’ on the evening of the killing and was there when the Montgomerys arrived. He said that Mathis went off about dark and did not return before he left for home, about 10 o’clock. He said he did not know where Mathis went. This statement was evidently more damaging to his case than any other testimony given, as it was evidently false. Jackson further stated that he arrived at home at 11 o’clock and about 4 o’clock the next morning Mathis called him to the gate and told him of the killing, and asked his advice about getting Shell Vines and Jim Vines to swear to an alibi.

The argument in this case was begun Friday morning and splendid speeches were made by both prosecution and defense. At 5 o’clock in the afternoon the case was given to the jury, who were about an hour, returning the verdict of guilty, with the penalty of life imprisonment in the penitentiary.

It was an impressive scene in court Friday afternoon when Will Mathis and Orlando Lester were brought in to receive their awful doom. Judge Lowery, in a very impressive manner told them that they had been found guilty of the murder of John A. Montgomery and set Friday, Feb, 14^th as the day they would be hung.

George Jackson, who was with Will Mathis when captured, plead guilty and was sentenced to two years in the penitentiary.

When sentenced by Judge P. H. Lowery, Jackson was asked what he had to say, he said; "You are sending an innocent man to life imprisonment." Jackson’s wife and child, who sat by him during the trial, did not go with him to the court room when he went to receive his sentence.

Saturday was spent in making up a jury for the trial of Whit Owens for the murder of Hugh Montgomery. The jury was not secured until 10 o’clock Monday morning. The State made a stronger case than was made against him during his first trial. Additional testimony was introduced, showing that on being taken to jail Saturday, Owens and the negro Lester were chained together and Owens tried to get Lester to refuse to testify against him, and telling him to say that he, (Owens) had nothing to do with the shooting.

Dr. Bramlett and Mr. John H. Hope testified that when going to their homes Saturday night they heard a conversation between Owens and Lester, both of them being at the window of their respective cells in the jail. Owens urged Lester not to tell whose gun the shooting was done with, or that Owens had anything to with it.

The defense introduced no testimony and at the conclusion of the testimony, as before, moved for preemtory instructions, but the motion was not sustained by the court.

Argument was begun Tuesday morning, and the jury brought in a verdict at 10:45 o’clock Wednesday morning finding the defendant, Whit Owens, guilty as charged in the indictment, and at 2:45 yesterday afternoon Judge P. H. Lowery sentenced him to hang on Friday, Feb. 14^th. His lawyers, Messrs. Stephens & Stephens will appeal the case to the Supreme Court.

RESUME OF THE CASE.

On Saturday, Nov. 16^th, John A. Montgomery and Hugh Montgomery, were sent by the Federal officials to arrest Will Mathis, who lived 18 miles south east of Oxford, upon the charge of illicit distilling. The two officers arrived at the home of Mathis about 4 o’clock of the same evening, and were met at the gate by Mathis. They served the warrant, and were requested by Mathis to wait until he could finish dressing a hog which he had killed. The Montgomerys agreed to wait, the testimony proved, and went into Mathis’ house. Bill Jackson was there also. The negro, Orlando Lester, was helping Mathis clean the hog, and was sent to Whit Owens’ for a gun, which testimony showed was loaded with buckshot.

This much of the blood curdling tragedy is known for fact, but the testimony has been so conflicting that it has been impossible to decide what took place that night.

From beginning to end of the trial, the four men implicated, Mathis, Lester, Owens and Jackson, have done their best to prove themselves innocent and everybody else guilty. But it remains a stern fact that the two Montgomerys were killed and their bodies burned with the house.

Will Mathis and Orlando Lester were found guilty of murder as charged and sentenced to hang on Friday, Feb. 14^th. Bill Jackson was found guilty as charged, and sentenced to life imprisonment. Whit Owens was found guilty of the murder of John A. Montgomery, and sentenced to life imprisonment. Upon his second trial for the murder of Hugh Montgomery, Owens was found guilty as charged in the indictment, and sentenced to be hung on Feb. 14^th.