Feature Article on Frank Earl. Topic: LAW & ORDER
& PEOPLE
Written by Rich Wallace in
January, 1997
MAN EXECUTED AFTER 1907 SIDNEY, OHIO MURDER...Pg 2 |
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| The assailants ran from the store. Two
witnesses heard the report of the guns, and saw two men run north into the shadows on
Linden Street. In the doorway lay the lifeless body of William B. Legg. All three
newspapers in Sidney carried the story. The Daily News expressed the sentiments of
an outraged public: "The shooting of Mr. Legg was a cold blooded, premeditated
murder and one of the most atrocious crimes ever committed in the history of Shelby
County." If the guilty parties were ever caught, the word on the street was that
'justice' would be carried out before they could ever make it to trial. Police Chief O'Leary deduced the men had fled the city. He gave the only description the witnesses could give (one tall man with a stiff hat and one short man with a 'slouch' hat, both dressed in dark clothing) to the conductors of every train passing through Sidney. Detective Dan Kelley of the Lima police department was walking his beat the next Sunday morning around the square in Lima when he observed two strangers generally matching the descriptions received from Chief O'Leary. Both men drew their guns, but Kelley knocked one down and subdued them both. The citizens of both Lima and Sidney would later establish a 'Hero's Fund' for Dan Kelley, and present him with a substantial check. Word traveled like wildfire back to Sidney. The murderers were caught. O'Leary hopped the next train to Lima. He and Kelley confronted Frank Earl and Frank Walker for the first time. There was no talk about providing an attorney. They were separated, and questioned throughout the day and into the night. |
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