Bloomington Star, March 15, 1935, p. 1.
Submitted by Randi Richardson


 JURY TO HEAR TESTIMONY OF HARTFIELD, JR.

 Will be Returned from Reformatory



 Lon Hartfield, Jr., colored, now serving a prison term for manslaughter,
 will be returned here Saturday from Pendleton to testify on behalf of his
 father, Lon Hartfield, Sr., now on trial in circuit court on a charge of
 murder.



 Both Hartfields were arrested last August in connection with the shooting of
 Charles Languell, Owen County farmer, who died from shotgun wounds allegedly
 inflicted by the Hartfields, Frank Hill and Frank Deming whose trials will
 be held later.



 Languell was shot when he found the four men in his melon patch and ordered
 them to leave.

 The trial is expected to go to the jury next Monday or Tuesday.  Prosecutor
 Leroy Baker indicated Thursday night.



 Nine witnesses were called Thursday by the state and six more are scheduled
 to take the stand today.  Today's state witnesses will include Sheriff
 Walter Phillips of Owen County and his deputy, Charles Lucas; Mrs. Languell
 and Drs. Ben Ross, J. E. Moser and Julia Thom of Gosport.



 Among the first witnesses called were Perry Cooper; Gosport railway agent
 who saw the quartet walking down the railroad tracks; Raymond Gray,
 photographer, who took views of the scene of the shooting; Noah Gardner,
 Languell's partner in a melon-growing enterprise, and Mrs. Gardner.



 John Smith, South Washington Street, who was fishing near the scene of the
 shooting, testified he heard five shots, first one and then four others,
 apparently coming from different guns.  Alpha Whitaker, Mr. and Mrs. Jeff
 Summitt and John Whitaker, also testified they heard five shots.



 One of the chief witnesses for the state was Sam Secrist who heard the shots
 and ran to where Languell fell.  He stated he examined Languell's
 double-barreled shotgun and that only one shell had been fired.  He stated
 that he examined weeds in the field that had been cut off by the shots and
 that two shots coming from different directions converged at the point where
 Languell had been standing.



 The trial got underway at 3:30 o'clock Wednesday afternoon when the jury was
 sworn in.  The defense contends that Hartfield is guilty only of trespass
 while the state will attempt to prove Hartfield guilty with his son of the
 shooting, claiming that all four men are equally guilty under the law since
 the murder was committed while the quartet was engaged in the commission of
 a felony.



 The jury in the case includes:  Thomas Phillips, L. P. Reeves, George Adams,
 Charles Hudson, Clarence Neil, Theodore Rogers, Mort Langley, Milt Rhorer,
 P. C. Gilliatt, Dufford Lundy, James Taylor and Bruce Sare.