Hold Davis for Second Degree
YOUTH WHO CARRIED WEAPON WHICH KILLED DOROTHY JONES, 14 YEARS OLD, FACES MURDER CHARGE.
The grand jury which was summoned by Judge A. G. Campbell last week to consider the case of Jeff Davis, Jr., who was held following a recommendation to that effect by the coroner’s jury, found a true bill against the defendant for murder in the second degree.
Young Davis was immediately arraigned before Judge Campbell, before whom he entered a plea of not guilty, and who placed his bond in the sum of $2,000, which was given at once, with the boy’s father, Jeff Davis, Sr., veteran mail carrier out of the DeFuniak office, and Tax Collector W. T. Ray, as sureties.
The action of the grand jury in finding a true bill on a second degree murder charge, came rather in the nature of a surprise to many who had followed the case with interest. The coroner’s jury, which spent considerable time in consideration of the matter, had recommended that Davis be held for the grand jury for the third degree murder or manslaughter, and it was generally believed that the grand jury would not recommend a more serious charge than did the coroner’s body. The grand jury went thoroughly into the affair: assembled Thursday morning, it was not until late on Friday that they returned a true bill with the charge as given.
The grand jury which spent two days in consideration of the matter which resulted in the death of Dorothy Jones, fourteen-year-old school girl, was composed of D. O. Gainey, A. C. Croley, Alton Spence, W. H. Wesley, Sr., Ocie O. Starnes, Kenneth Smith, Fred Jones, D. J. Burke, J. A. Neel, R. J. Stefflemier, C. E. Dunden, P. Wesley Smith, J. S. Howell, J. W. McLeod, Armair Greggs, J. B. Stubbs, James Creary and M. D. Locke–which body organized by electing W. H. Wesley as foreman, and P. W. Smith as clerk. The final presentment of the grand jury reads:
“We. the grand jurors at the above term of court, beg leave to make this, our final presentment:
“We report a true bill against Jeff Davis for murder in the second degree.
“This was the only case bound over to us for consideration, but we investigated other matters and took such action in these as we thought proper.
“One Richard Carroll, who is under withheld sentence from this court, was called before our body as a material witness in a case under investigation. We feel that this witness committed perjury in an effort to keep from telling facts which, if made known to the court, would result in the imposing of sentence upon him. In view of this, and in view of the questionable conduct on his part, on the occasion under investigation, we recommend that sentence be now imposed upon him on the charge upon which sentence has been withheld.
“We desire to thank the court for his able charge, and to express our appreciation to the clerk, the sheriff and the state attorney, for their assistance and co-operation during our sessions.
“Having completed our labors, we now respectfully request that we be discharged, this 21st day of September, 1935.”
Not in recent years has any case aroused as much local comment as did the death of Dorothy Jones, a fourteen-year-old Pensacola school girl, on the front porch at the DeFuniak hotel, on the afternoon of Monday, September 9. She, and Jeff Davis, who had been paying the girl rather assiduous attention on the occasion of this, as well as former visits which she had made to her father here. Mr. Jones, who is head of the local branch of the PCA, made his home at the DeFuniak hotel, and on the afternoon of the day in question, Davis, who is seventeen years of age, and the girl, were seated on the porch, and were handling a .38 calibre Smith & Wesson revolver. The gun was discharged, the ball striking the girl in the left breast, from the left side, passed entirely through her body, and made its exit under the right should blade.
At the request of State Attorney Dixie E. Beggs, Davis was arrested and held without bail to await the finding of a coroner’s jury which assembled the next day, and adjourned until the following Friday, when it brought in its verdict, which read: “We, the coroner’s jury, on their oaths, say that the said Jeff Davis did make an assault on the said Dorothy Jones and did inflict a mortal wound from which the said Dorothy Jones did die * * * and the said Jeff Davis did the said Dorothy Jones kill and murder. We, the coroner’s jury, further request that Jeff Davis be held for the grand jury, charged with manslaughter, and that a grand jury be immediately empaneled for this investigation.”
County Judge L. H. Brannon placed Davis’ bond at $1,500, which amount was promptly furnished, and which sum was upped an additional $500 by Circuit Judge Campbell, following the recommendation of the grand jury.
Davis will be tried, under the true bill brought by the grand jury, at the next (January) term of the Walton county circuit court.