Chapter 14 – Closing Arguments
Monday September 26, 1966
The article in the September 26 edition of the Lebanon Daily News was the first one about the Carrie Layser murder where James Shellhamer received a byline, although I assume that he wrote all or nearly all of them. The Daily News was a bit stingy with its bylines.
He reported that during the course of the trial Mrs. Diane Sites was at her husband’s side the entire time. The two of them were frequently seen holding hands, and during court recesses were seen to kiss. She wore a different dress every day of the trial.
Shellhamer also reported that Assistant District Attorney R. Hart Beaver said that if the jury returned a first degree murder verdict, his office would decide whether to ask for the death penalty. It seems strange that they’ve had all this time and haven’t made a decision, so presumably there must have been some disagreement among the people in the office.
If the jury were to return a first degree murder verdict, then Judge Gates would call for additional testimony in the penalty phase.
When court convened on Monday morning and the jury was seated, the prosecution and the defense began their closing arguments.
Defense Attorney H. Rank Bickel went first and spoke for about 70 minutes; he asked for an acquittal.
Prosecutor Beaver followed and spoke for about 35 minutes; he asked for a first degree murder verdict.
And that’s all that James Shellhamer wrote about the closing arguments! Perhaps he was space constrained.
Judge Gates began reviewing the testimony and instructing the jury at 1:15 PM and concluded shortly after 3 PM.
There were five possible verdicts that could be returned, as Judge Gates explained in his charge to the jury: Guilty of murder in the first degree, guilty of murder in the second degree, voluntary manslaughter, not guilty by reason of insanity, and not guilty.
The jury returned to the courtroom at 4:35 PM to receive additional instructions. At that time a note handed to the judge by jury foreman Clifford Groy indicated that the jury wanted a review of the definitions of first and second degree murder and voluntary manslaughter.
Judge Gates provided them.
In his definitions the judge pointed out that the elements of premeditation and malice were needed to make an unlawful killing a case of first degree murder unless it is a felony killing, in which case premeditation need not be shown.
If the premeditation is absent but the element of malice is present, then the unlawful killing becomes a case of second degree murder. The absence of both premeditation and malice lowers it to voluntary manslaughter.
Malice is characterized by a hardness of the heart, cruelty, a recklessness of consequences, and similar qualities.
Judge Gates also pointed out that a proven defense of intoxication might lower the degree of the crime, and a proven defense of insanity could be grounds for a not guilty verdict.
Then the jury returned to continue its deliberations.
[Portions of this post were transcribed nearly verbatim from the Lebanon Daily News coverage of the trial written by James Shellhamer.]
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