Murder Mystery Stories Butler County Genealogy Trails Kansas

BRUMBO TO STAND IN OWN DEFENSE

Earl "Montana Red" Bumbo on trial for first defense murder in Butler County District court - took the stand today in his own defense. His testimony was expected to be concluded late this afternoon.

Given time for the state's cross examination, the case was expecting to go to the jury late this afternoon.

Brumbo, a 62 year old former world champion rodeo bronc buster, showed the strain of the trial just before noon when he broke down and wept as he related events leading up to the shooting on February 17 of William Enoch Byers, step-father of Brumbo's wife Clara.

Witnesses called by the defense this morning to testify were Mr. Whiteside, special sheriff's deputy at Potwin and Deputy Sheriff Ercel Reed.

Went "To Close Deal"

In his testimony, Brumbo said he and his wife Clara had gone to the Byers (Hoard) ranch the afternoon of the shooting to close a cattle "deal" with Glen Conder, a cattleman who has a lease on a portion of the Hoard pasture. He told the court that Conder - with money provided by Mrs. Hoard - wanted to purchase cattle owned by Brumbos.

Brumbo told the court he was forced to sell the cattle to pay off a $5,700 government farm loan. Mrs. Hoard, he said, wanted the cattle kept in Conder's name to prevent their sale by her husband, Enoch Byers, the murdered man.

Brumbo said he had no previous knowledge of the killing and that he was surprised when he was told that his wife had shot Byers. When he heard the shots, he said he rushed into the house and wrested the gun from his wife's hand.

Defense attorneys who questioned Brumbo this morning and early this afternoon were Dick Moss and O J. Connell. Attorneys for the prosecution who will cross-examine Brumbo are County Attorney Morris Moon and his assistant, Bob King. (El Dorado Times, May 11, 1953)

WITNESSES TESTIFY IN BRUMBO TRIAL

Testimony and introduction of evidence in the murder trial of Earl "Montana Red" Brumbo got underway this morning in Butler County District Court when Mrs. Cora A. Hoard wife of the slain man took the stand.

Mrs. Hoard testified and under went cross examination from 9 a.m. until noon and again took the stand when court convened at 1 this afternoon.

Presenting the state's case is County Attorney Morris Moon and assistant Bob King, Dick Moss and O. J. Connell are attorneys for the defense.

Jurors Selected

Jurors selected yesterday to hear the case are 11 men and one woman. They are: Mrs. Ethelyn M. Kelly, William A. Orth, and Erwin Sicklebower, all of El Dorado; Lawrence Slaymaker, Route 4; C. G. Baker, Route 1; Cecil L. Turner, W. W. Fowler, both of Augusta; Darrell Seward, Leon; Le Roy Lewis, Douglass; Erving Teter, Route 1, Burns; Clyde Stark, Whitewater; and Bert L. Osborn, Latham.

Brumbo is charged with the fatal shooting on February 17 of William Enoch Byers, Latham Ranch Foreman and husband of Mrs. Hoard. Byers was shot seven times with a .44 caliber revolver as he lay on a bed in his home reading a newspaper.

After the shooting, Mrs. Clara Brumbo, daughter of Mrs. Hoard and wife of the accused, admitted to officers that she fired all the shots. Charges of first degree murder were filed against her and on the following day charges were also filed against her husband.

Mrs. Brumbo was found insane at a hearing in district court and is now in the ward for the criminally insane at the State Hospital at Larned.

In her testimony this morning, Mrs. Hoard repeated her earlier statement that she saw Earl Brumbo fire into Byers' body after Clara had first fired.

Another key witness for the state who was expected to take the stand this afternoon is Glen Conder, who was at the Hoard ranch on the day of the shooting and was the one who notified the sheriff that Byers had been killed. (El Dorado Times, May 19, 1953)

JURY FINDS EARL BRUMBO NOT GUILTY

Verdict Returned After Deliberations Lasting One Hour, 47 Minutes

Earl Brumbo accused slayer of William Enoch Byers, was found not guilty of both first and second degree murder at 2 o'clock in Butler County District Court. The jury of 11 men and one woman deliberated one hour and 47 minutes and cast three ballots before returning the final verdict. The jury started its deliberation at 11:13 o'clock this morning. W. A. Orth, Jr., was foreman. The first ballot was to determine whether Brumbo was guilty of first degree murder. This vote was 12-0 against. On the second ballot, the jury voted 11-1 against a second degree murder charge. The third ballot was 12-0.

A district court jury of 11 men and one woman today was deciding the fate of Earl Brumbo, 62 year old accused murderer. After hearing the closing arguments of the presecution and defense attorneys, the 12 listened to instructions from Judge W. N. Calkins and filed to the jury room at 11:15 a.m.

The closing statements of opposing counsels climaxed court activity which began Monday morning with the selection of a jury to decide the innocence or guilt of the one time champion rodeo bronc buster.

If the jury returns a verdict of guilty to the charge of first degree murder, members of the jury must decide whether Brumbo will hang or serve a life term. Should the jury exercising its prerogative reduce the charge to second degree murder and return a verdict of guilty, Judge Calkins would decide the sentence, which cannot be less than 10 years imprisonment.

Would Re-Try Case

If the jurors fail to reach a verdict, the prosecution will re-try the case at a later date.

To free Brumbo, the jury must return a verdict of not guilty or acquit him. In the latter case the jury sets the accused free of charges and the prosecution cannot call for a re-trial.

Brumbo along with his wife, was charged with first degree murder in the fatal shooting of William Enoch Byers, 56, at his ranch home near Latham on February 17. Mrs. Brumbo, step-daughter of Byers admitted killing "the Indian" because he was going "south with mother's money."

Mrs. Brumbo's mother, Mrs. Clara A. Hoard, about 82, was the wife of Byers. The couple married in Wichita on Dec. 26, 1846, according to official county court records. Mrs. Brumbo earlier said she had long resented the amount of money spent by Byers.

Although Mrs. Brumbo was immediately charged with first degree murder, she was judged insane and is now committed to the ward for the criminally insane at the State Hospital at Larned.

Not Fit To Travel

It was learned here yesterday that the counsel for the defense attempted to subpoena Mrs. Brumbo for a witness but was notified she was neither physically able nor mentally competent to travel.

Despite the testimony of Mrs. Hoard, who testified she saw "Earl" take the gun from Mrs. Brumbo and shoot Enoch, the former rodeo follower maintained that when he charged into the room where his wife was he attempted to take the gun from her hand. At that time he said the gun in his wife's hand went off and it was this that Mrs. Hoard had seen.

Closing arguments to the jury were made by Dick Moss and O. J. Connell, attorneys for the defense and by Morris Moon, county attorney and prosecutor in the action. Mr. Moon was assisted during the trial by Bob King assistant county attorney. (El Dorado Times, May 24, 1953)

Note: William Enoch Byers was buried in the Atlanta Cemetery, Atlanta, Cowley County, Kansas next to Minnie B. Arnett Byers (his mother).

MURDER OF TWO OIL MEN SHROUDED IN MYSTERY

Mystery shrouds the slaying of two men found dead in a tank house on the Hamilton lease in the northeast quarter of 14-26-4, six miles west of El Dorado, at 7 o'clock this morning. The men were Jack Price, farm boss for the Empire on the Hamilton and Hiram Bracken. Each was shot through the head and both had been dead several hours.

The pumper for the Empire on the Hamilton lease went to his work as usual this morning. Shortly afterward, he sent his helper to the tank house which is some distance north of the pump house on an errand. The helped opened the door and saw a dead man lying just inside. He went no further but returned to the pumper and reported his find. Both then hurried to the scene. In the meantime two other men came along the road and had seen the horse and buggy loose as they came along and were attracted by the unusual circumstance. They met the others at the tank and started an investigation. They found the body of Hiram Bracken, an oil worker, lying just inside the door, with his head and one hand in a pool of oil. On the opposite side of the tank, they found the farm boss, Jack Price, lying on the board walk, dead with a gun in his right hand. Both men were shot through the head. A further investigation revealed the fact that an attempt had been made to burn the tank, as the sweater belonging to Price with a bottle of gasoline were found lying across the valve of the tank and the sweater was scorched. Evidently the woolen goods had failed to ignite.

Sheriff Newt Purcell was at once notified and with Deputies Leon Cousland and E. E. McKnight, County Attorney Williams and Coroner W. E. Turner at once summoned a jury and proceeded with an inquest. Those sworn as jurors were: J. L. Shriver, W. D. Medock, Fred Knapp, M. Groves, E. Kennedy, M. S. Smock.

But little evidence was obtainable. However, it developed that Bracken had been in the employ of the Empire and was discharged about one month ago by Price, the farm boss. Those who saw him Tuesday said he had been drinking all day and a lady living near said he came to their house about 6:30 and was drunk then. Later in the evening, he was seen siding with the farm boss, Price in his buggy. Bracken boarded on the South Paulson lease and his trunk and belongings are at his boarding place. Nothing is known of him, save that on his right arm in India ink is the following: "Hiram Bracken, Private Co. L.; 16 Inft." It is said that he told a friend only yesterday that his father was an attorney living in Los Angeles, Calif. He is supposed to be about 35 years of age.

Jack Price the farm boss, has been in the employ of the Empire for some time. He has said that he expected trouble with Bracken, evidently because of his discharge. It was told last evening his landlady noticed that when he went out he strapped his gun about his waist and she wondered then why he should do so as he seldom carried the gun. He was seen later riding with Bracken and the next seen of either was when both were found dead in the tank house. The gun found in his hand was not his property. It is said Price's gun was in the holster it was a blue barrel gun. The one found on his body was a bright nickel barrel and the holster could not be found. The body was laid on the boards perfectly straight, the hands folded and the gun carefully placed in the right hand.

The jury verdict could not be obtained before the Times went to Press.

Jack Price was a Mason and the Masons will have charge of his funeral. His mother, Mrs. Mary Price, lives at Wellsville. He was about 25 years of age. Price's body is at the Turner undertaking rooms and that of Bracken is at Byrd Bros.' rooms. (Walnut Valley Times, Wednesday, September 25, 1918)

MYSTERY IN THE KILLING OF TWO MEN UNSOLVED

The mystery surrounding the shooting of the two men, Jack Price farm boss for the Empire on the Hamilton lease in the northeast quarter of 14-26-4, about six miles west of El Dorado, and Hiram Bracken, a former employee of the company, whose dead bodies were found in a tank house on the lease Wednesday morning, has not been cleared.

Sheriff Newt Purcell and his entire force, and Chief of Police M. e. Jolliffe of the Empire are working hard on the case. If they have a clue, they will not let it be known. Coroner Turner declines to make public the verdict of the jury which was summoned for the inquest and the mystery deepens.

Jack Price's father arrived from Wellsville this morning and will leave for the home on the 10 o'clock train tonight with the body of his son, for funeral and burial at Wellsville. Price was shot through the head, the bullet entering an inch above the right ear and coming out 3-1/2 inches above the left ear. It cannot be found and there are no marks on the tank or in the vicinity of the place where the body lay. It is supposed to have been 38 calibre. The gun found with the body was not Price's. His gun was one with a blue barrel and he carried it in a holster. The one with the body was nickel and bright. Neither Price's gun nor the holster can be found. The body was laid on the board walk inside the building, the hands were folded across the breast and the gun was placed in the right hand. Officers scout the idea that Price could have committed suicide.

The body of Bracken was found just inside the door, with his head and one hand in a pool of oil. A jagged hole about an inch below the left ear showed where the bullet had entered his head and it lodged about an inch above the right eye. The body is at Byrd's undertaking parlors and will be held until relatives can be located or someone in authority makes disposition of the case.

Coroner W. E. Turner, gave it as his opinion Thursday that one man and perhaps two were implicated in the double murder. His theory is that as Price came around the tank house from the south he met a man at the door in the east side of the building. He became engaged in some controversy and a third man appeared and shot him. The body was then taken and placed in the position it was found. It is Coroner Turner's opinion as well as that of other officials that it would have been impossible for Price to have composed himself and then shot himself as there was not the slightest evidence of a struggle.

Apparently an effort to burn the tank to cover up the crime had been made, as Price's sweater had been taken, evidently saturated with gasoline and with a bottle partly filled with gasoline was laid across the intake valve of the tank. The sweater was scorched and showed that it had been set on fire but the spark failed to ignite.

Developments in the case are being anxiously awaited and it is confidently expected the slayers will soon be caught. (Walnut Valley Times, Thursday, September 26, 1918)

NO DEVELOPMENTS IN DOUBLE MURDER

Nothing new has developed in unraveling the mystery surrounding the death of Jack Price, farm boss on the Empire's Hamilton lease and Hiram Bracken, a former Empire employee, both of whom were found dead Wednesday morning, shot through the head. Officers are still hard at work on the case.

The body of Jack Price was sent to his home at Wellsville, last night. Relatives of Bracken have been located at Brooksville, Mo., and they by long distance phone instructed Byrd Bros. Undertaking Co. to hold the body for later instruction. Bracken's relatives were located through the assistance of Claude Rice who is employed in the Oxford Café and says he and Bracken were schoolmates years ago. Bracken's uncle, James Bracken is reputed to be quite wealthy. Bracken is also said to have a brother in California who is wealthy. Those who knew him in the oil field claim he was possessed of a diamond ring, ruby ring and a diamond brooch. These are all missing and it is said cannot be found. They were not on the body when it was discovered. (Walnut Valley Times, Friday, February 27, 1918)