PARKER MURDER.

Press, Volume LXIV, Issue 19447, 22 October 1928, Page 9

PARKER MURDER.

HICKMAN EXECUTBIX. , KILLBD GIRL FOR KANSOIt, / (tamo PMSBB AMOOUTIOX—bt ■oexmo TBLBQJUPH—COFTBIOHT.) SAN FRANCISCO, October 18. At San Quintin Prison, Edward Hickman, a youth in his teens, was hanged for the murder of Marian Parker in December, 1927.. HiQanan walked ealmly to the' gallows, apparently quite self-possessed, before over 200 witnesses. The young murdorer, prior to his* execution, spent a considerable part of the night talking to his. guards. He related the story of his life, and said that ho killed the girl for greed because he wanted the ransom. "If they should npt hang me," he exclaimed, "then they should never hang another man. My crimo was one of the moat gruesome in history." Hickman slept little on the final night, spending his time playing the gramophone, whon not talking to tho guards. Hickman embraced religion fol* lowing his ' conviction.-—Australian Press Association. . UNUSUALLY LARGE BRAIN. (Received October Slst, U. 6 pjiu) SAN FRANCISCO, October 30. At the University of California: medical experts performed a careful post-mortem examination of Hickman, and found him to be normal physically. There was no organic evidence of ia* sanity, but the Drain is reported to bo unusually large.—Australian Press Association. . [Marian Parker, aged IS, the twial daughter of Perry Parker, a wealthy Los Angeles hanker, was lured out of) Bchool by a well-dressed' young man, who said that her father was ill. With* in an hour the (parents received a demand for a ransom of 1500 dollars. Thai entire detective force of Los Angeles was set to work on the case? and, after the distracted father had received* several notes, including two from hid daughter, who said she was undergoing torture, advised the acceptance of tho kidnapper's terms. Under instructions, Mr Parker drove to a certain place, where he handed a man in a car 1500 dollars. The man drove a short din- t tance, lifted the girl, who was apparv ently sleeping, out of, the car, placed her on the ground, and drove off. When tho father oame to pick up .the prone , figure of his daughter, he found, .to his horror, that she had been horribly mutilated. Then followed a.man-hunt through the Western States, and Hickman was finally arrested at. Pendleton, / Oregon. Later he confessed, declaring that he had at first no intention of kill- . ing the girl, Jmt, fearing detection, :de- ■.'{ do so. He strangled herewith : piano wire, cut the hody to pieces, and put it together again for presentation to the father on claiming the ransom. At the trial the plea was raised of insanity, and Hickman's relatives had sufficient money to keep him alive, under the American system of slow justice, for nearly a yea*. The trial of Hickman, as of fukunaga, the Honolulu murderer, recently convicted and sentenced to death in a similar. case, indicated the influence of sensational journalism on persons of weak iateV lect.] ' ' '