Fannin County, Georgia

The Columbus Ledger

1910-10-27

Atlanta, Oct. 27, __A young mountain boy who is said to be 28 years old and who looks less that 18 with his smooth, rosy cheeks and frank, wide-open eyes, is locked up in a steel cell at the Fulton county jail, under sentence to die November 18th for the murder of his girl-wife.

If a stranger went into the county jail and looked the prisoners over one by one, young Withrow would probably be the last of the lot you would think of picking out for a murderer. Yet the evidence against him was overwhelming, it is said, and he was brought to Atlanta from Fannin county, where the crime was committed, because it was feared the enraged farmers of that neighborhood would take the law into their own hands and lynch him.

The Macon Daily Telegraph

1911-04-13

Wife Murderer Will Be Hanged

Atlanta,  April 12

John J. Withrow must pay the death penalty for the murder of his wife in Fannin County.

This morning the supreme court handed down an opinion affirming the lower court in denying a new trial to the young murderer, and he will be taken back to Fannin shortly to have sentence passed upon him again.

The Withrow case has become more or less famous on account of the peculiar atrocity of his act in shooting his young wife, in a delicate condition, to death as she fled from his drunken fury. She was soon to become a mother, when Withrow came home one day in a ugly drunken humor. He began abusing his wife, and she started to leave him to prevent injury to her person.

As she fled from the house Withrow seized a gun and shot her to death as she ran. He was captured and as there was fear of mob vengeance, Withrow was brought here for safe keeping.

Several months ago he escaped form the Fulton tower with two or three others. All were recaptured, Withrow among the first. He was located in DeKalb County by two farmers and brought to Atlanta. Withrow was almost starved and frozen, and stopped at a farm house for a night's lodging.

An evening paper containing Withrow's picture came to the house during the evening and the farmer recognized the escaped slayer. Next morning he questioned Withrow, who readily admitted his identity and said he was ready to go back to jail.

His only hope now is in commutation, and it is more than probable that this plea will be brought before the prison commission as soon as he is re-sentenced to the gallows.

Decisions were rendered by the supreme court in several other murder cases. One from Cobb County was reversed for the second time. Johnson Flannigan has twice been convicted of murder for killing another negro boy while in a playful scuffle on the streets of Marietta. The higher court has twice reversed convictions for murder, the element of doubt being an strong as to any willful intent that the higher court could not accept the verdicts.

The conviction of Cornelius Walker in Jasper County was affirmed. Walker was indicted with tow others for the murder of John Childs. The jury returned a verdict of guilty with recommendation in  Walker's case, and acquitted the other two. There was nothing in the issues raised, according to the supreme court, to warrant anew trail.

transcribed by Pam Rathbone