John William Burke

Ancestors

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Biography

THE WEEKLY ARGUS Petaluma, California May 15, 1874

The Burke Trail - Verdict of the Jury Imprisonment for Life - Motion for a New Trail - The Prisoner

The trail of J.W. Burke for the murder of John B. Owens in Mendocino County, on the 22d of Feb. 1873, commenced in the in the District Court at Santa Rosa on the 4th instant and con- cluded last Monday. The prosecution and defense were repre- sented by able and experienced counsel, and it is safe to say that no criminal trail that has ever taken place in Sonoma or Mendo- cino counties has excited so much interest as the trial of Burke. The testimony in the case was concluded on Thursday and on Friday afternoon the arguments of counsel commenced. The Courtroom was filled with spectators, many ladies being present. At 9 o`clock on Saturday evening the arguments closed, and the case was submitted. In an hour and a half the jury returned with the verdict of "murder in the first degree," naming the pen- alty to be imprisonment in the State Prison for life. The prisoner manifested some emotion when the verdict was pronounced, but did not seem to be deeply affected. We are informed that immeditately upon retiring a ballot was taken by the jury which resulted in a unanimous for murder in the first degree, the plea of insanity which was strenuously urged by the defendent`s counsel throughout the trial being entirely ignored. This point settled, the next question to be decided was whether the punishment should be death or imprisonment for life. Upon this question there was at first a disagreement, but among the jurymen, but finally those opposed to the death pen- alty carried their point and a verdict accordingly was returned On Monday the prisoner was brought into court to receive his sentence. Judge Curtis, his counsel, moved for a new trail on the grounds: first, that the paper in the change of venue from Mendocino to Sonoma were not properly made out, and second, that as the crime of which the prisoner was convicted was committed before the enactment of the law leaving the jury to decide the kind of punishment, the court erred in instructing the jury that the new law was applicable to the case. Both points were overruled by the court, and the Judge pronounced sentence in accordance with the verdict of the jury. On Monday the Sheriff took the prisoner to San Quentin, where he is to remain in confinement during life.

"Badges and Buckshot" Lawlessness in Old California

In 1872, Doc Standley was sworn in as a deputy by the newly elected sheriff, S. J. Chalfant, who felt that Standley`s talents were behind a silver star and in the saddle, not in the schoolhouse. Doc did not prove him wrong. On Feb. 25, 1873, Bill Burke shot and killed his brother-in-law at his ranch on Robinson Creek, three miles below Ukiah. Burke's wife had given birth exactly nine months after they were married, and he became convinced that the child was not his. When his wife's twenty-four-year-old brother, John Owens, insisted that the baby was legitimate, Burke chased him down on horseback and blew his head apart with a double-barreled shotgun. Doc Standley and Sheriff Chalfant, leading a thirty-five man posse, hunted the killer for three days in the mountains west of Ukiah before they ran him down. Burke received a life term in San Quentin for this cold-blooded murder.

This information was obtained by the author from the San Francisco Bulletin, dated March 3, 1873 and San Francisco Call, Aug. 9, 1896.

His sentence was commuted by Gov. Irwin and he was discharged Nov. 12, 1880.

Child of John Burke and Female Owens is:

i. BABY GIRL3 BURKE, b. 1872. No more info is currently available. Can you add to this biography?

Sources

• WikiTree profile Burke-779 created through the import of Burke - 05032009.ged on Jan 9, 2012 by Bill Fikes. See the Changes page for the details of edits by Bill and others.