Saturday, July 4, 2020

The School-girl Murder.

Mamie Kelly
Fourteen-year-old Mamie Kelly of San Francisco, had a crush on the boy next door, nineteen-year-old Aleck Goldenson. Though Aleck was the kind of boy who appeals to teenaged girls—an artist and a bit of a hoodlum—her family had no use for him at all. In spite of this, Mamie took every opportunity be near him. Aleck first enjoyed her attention, then tolerated it, then actively tried to put a stop to it. He ended their relationship for good one day in November 1886, when he met Mamie on the street and shot her in the face.

Date:  November 10, 1886

Location:   San Francisco, California

Victim:  Mary Elizabeth "Mamie" Kelly

Cause of Death:  Gunshot

Accused:   Alexander Goldenson

Synopsis:
According to a statement Aleck Goldenson wrote at the time of his arrest, he had met Mamie Kelly two years earlier when his family moved in to their house on Hayes Street in San Francisco. She was twelve then and he was seventeen. Mamie dropped a bracelet over the fence between her yard and his, and he picked it up for her. She later told him she had deliberately dropped it so she could get acquainted with him. After that she saw him quite frequently and he invited her in to see his artwork. Aleck would also visit at Mamie’s house and he gave her a silk handkerchief and other presents. Mamie lived with her grandmother, who, upon learning of their relationship, forbade Mamie from seeing Aleck.

Aleck Goldenson
Beyond the obvious age difference, there were reasons for the grandmother to keep Mamie away from Aleck. He was an art student but was often in trouble both in and out of class. The San Francisco Bulletin wrote, “He is a young, hot-tempered fellow, and affects the style of dress adopted by the hoodlum element of the rising generation.” And it wasn’t just his style of dress; Goldenson had been arrested several times for drunkenness and vagrancy and once for battery.

The more her family tried to keep her away from Aleck Goldenson the more determined Mamie became. She told Aleck she loved him and wanted him to take her away and marry her. When Aleck refused Mamie threatened to kill herself. Aleck realized that matters had gotten out of hand and he wrote her a four page letter telling her not to come to his house or speak to him again.

At the same time Aleck was seeing women closer to his own age. Mamie saw him kissing one of them and she was heartbroken. She sent him a note:
Dear Aleck, 
Is everything going to be like this? You are treating me mean. Dear Aleck, I don't know what to do. You nearly broke my heart when you kissed that girl last night. I could not sleep all night. Excuse bad writing, as I am afraid my grandmother is coming up soon. Dear, Aleck, I will follow you until I die. I will die an old maid if I don't get you and you know it. Please come back to your own Mamie Kelly once more. From your once loving sweetheart, 
Mamie Kelly 
P.S.- I want to have a talk with you. Please answer soon

They met on the street soon after; Mamie was coming from school, Aleck from a saloon. Here is what happened, according to Goldenson’s statement:
…she started to abuse me, calling me a d—d Jew, that I was trying to fool her. I said, ‘Mamie, I told you long ago that I would not have you for a ton of gold.’ She called me a d—d Jew again, and I pulled out my revolver and shot her.
He fired one shot, hitting her just above the right eye; she fell to the ground, dying instantly. There were several witnesses to the event, including some of Mamie’s schoolmates.  Goldenson began running away, chased by the driver of a laundry wagon who had had witnessed the murder. The chase was not necessary, as Goldenson ran straight to City Hall and told the police that he had shot his girl.

The police verified the murder and found the revolver where Goldenson had thrown it outside City Hall. Goldenson wrote a long statement detailing his relationship with Mamie Kelly and the events preceding the murder. The note allegedly written by Mamie Kelly was found in his pocket, but Mamie’s grandmother and her teacher both said it was not in her handwriting.

The police wasted no time indicting Goldenson, a coroner’s jury was assembled who found that the murder was done with malice aforethought, without cause, and charged him with “cold-blooded murder.” News of the murder had spread throughout San Francisco, and as the hearing proceeded, as many as 10,000 people gathered around City Hall, calling for “lynch law.” Police officers, with drawn clubs, finally broke up the crowd, arresting six for inciting a riot. Goldenson was whisked to County Jail.

Trial: February 20, 1886

Goldenson’s family hired attorney Eugene N. Deuprey to represent Aleck. Deuprey filed motions with the court asserting the indictment against his client was illegal since he was not notified in time to prepare a case or call witnesses. He also moved for a change of venue because the public was prejudiced against him. When Judge Murphy denied both motions, Deuprey moved that the court form a commission to take depositions of out-of-state witnesses living in Russia and in New York, who could testify that the Goldenson family had a history of “mental unsoundness.” The judge said he would take the matter under advisement but would not delay the trial.

When the trial began on February 20, Deuprey was not present in the courtroom. An associate of his moved for a continuance because the defendant’s attorneys were occupied with another trial. Judge Murphy denied the motion and was determined to start the trial. Against the wishes of the defendant’s family he appointed Goldenson new attorneys for the trial. When the new attorneys protested that Deuprey and Goldenson’s relatives refused to give them information the judge replied:
I have given the matter a great deal of thought. If the defendant’s relatives refuse to give necessary information to the attorneys appointed by the Court, the Court is not responsible. Call the jury.
By the end of the jury selection, Judge Murphy may have been sorry he hadn’t ruled for a change of venue. It took fifteen days and more than three hundred examination to find twelve impartial jurors. At  the twelfth selection the defense had run out of preemptory challenges and the judge swore in Mr. J. Butler who “had formed an opinion as to Goldenson’s guilt, which would require very strong evidence to remove.” He also expressed opposition to the “insanity dodge.”

The trial lasted four weeks, but included very little testimony beyond what was in the Coroner’s inquest. The defense brought in a doctor to evaluate Goldenson’s sanity, but without the cooperation of the family they could not effectively pursue an insanity defense. The case was given to the jury on March 28. According to the New York Tribune, “The jury on the first ballot was unanimous for the death penalty, but the stayed out fifty minutes and took a quiet smoke before they came in.”

Verdict: Guilty of first degree murder


Aftermath:

After the verdict, Deuprey rejoined the case and he and the court appointed attorneys filed several motions for a new trial and all were denied. The case was appealed to the California Supreme Court but the verdict was upheld. Alexander Goldenson was sentenced to hang on September 14, 1888.

While awaiting execution Goldenson exhibited hostile behavior. He was rude and abrasive to his jailers and others who came to see him. He would listen politely to evangelists and even sing hymns with them then when they left he would cruelly mimic them to the enjoyment of the other prisoners. After a visiting sheriff from Wisconsin was subjected to vile epithets from Goldenson, he was put in a “dark cell.” That night groans were heard from the cell and when it was opened the jailers found that Goldenson had cut his wrists with a penknife. The wounds were not deep enough to suggest suicide but they did get him out of the dark cell and into one where he could be watched more closely. Twice he was found to be in possession of morphine provided by visiting friends.
 
As his execution date approached, Goldenson began to mellow. On his cell wall was a photograph of Mamie Kelly in her confirmation dress; he declared that she was his only love. He said that his original statement was false and the murder was not premeditated. He called it a “minute” crime. It happened so quickly that he was confused by it ever since.


More than six hundred people were on hand in the jail on September 14 with many more standing in the street outside. An extra hundred policemen were on duty to preserve order. The night before his hanging, Goldenson was converted to Catholicism by Father Fassanott and it seemed to have a calming effect on the condemned man. At noon Goldenson was led to the gallows. In his left hand he held a picture of Mamie Kelly, tied with a silk string to his wrist so it would not fall to the ground when he let go. In his right hand he held an American flag. He stood in front of the scaffold and spoke to the crowd in a clear, unwavering voice:
“I wish to say a few words before I die. I have often reiterated that Mamie was my first and only love. I say now she was. I hope to be forgiven by her and all. I hope I will go to heaven. I think you for all your kindness to me, good-bye.”
With one hand, Goldenson, himself, put the noose around his neck and the black cap was drawn over his head. At 12:08 the trap was sprung and Goldenson died still holding the picture of his young victim.


Originally posted April 5, 2014.

Sources:
"A Boy Murderer to be Hanged". New York Tribune 29 Mar 1887.
"A Strange Case". San Francisco Bulletin 14 Sep 1888.
"A Successful Ruse". San Francisco Bulletin 8 May 1887: 1.
"Cold-Blooded Murder". San Francisco Bulletin 12 Nov 1886: 2.
"Died Game." The National Police Gazette 6 Oct 1888: 6.
Duke, Thomas S. Celebrated Criminal Cases of America. San Francisco: The James H. Barry Company, 1910
"Goldenson to Hang". San Francisco Bulletin 14 Apr 1887: 2.
"Goldenson's Tales". San Francisco Bulletin 30 Aug 1888.
"Hanged!". San Francisco Bulletin 14 Sep 1888.
"Killed His Sweetheart". Daily Illinois State Journal 11 Nov 1886.
"Long Quest for Jurors". San Francisco Bulletin 3 Mar 1887.
"The Goldenson Case." San Francisco Bulletin 21 Feb 1887: 2.
"The Goldenson Case." San Francisco Bulletin 7 Mar 1887: 2.
"The Goldenson Trial." San Francisco Bulletin 9 Mar 1887: 2.
"The Recent Murder." San Francisco Bulletin 13 Nov 1886.
"Yesterday's Murder." San Francisco Bulletin 11 Nov 1886: 2.



5 comments :

Unknown says:
April 25, 2015 at 8:10 PM

A picture of her: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_6klksNlnOz0/SWJQxT13eCI/AAAAAAAAECU/NjqrdeOm6Fg/s400/Mamie.jpg

Unknown says:
April 25, 2015 at 8:12 PM

A picture of her: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_6klksNlnOz0/SWJQxT13eCI/AAAAAAAAECU/NjqrdeOm6Fg/s400/Mamie.jpg

Unknown says:
March 15, 2018 at 5:32 PM

One day I'll show the art paintings from Aleck. My family was fortunate enough to find them hidden in a San Francisco home in a crawlspace and attic.

Unknown says:
September 13, 2018 at 6:13 PM

Please do!

NorthsideRasta says:
July 4, 2020 at 10:50 PM

Those evangelicals are something else.

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