100 years ago in Spokane: ‘Send me to the electric chair,’ murder defendant said as the trial in his friend’s killing commenced

Murder trial defendant Harry Williams, 84, gave a startling answer when a prosecutor asked if he had in fact told detectives that he shot at Jack Batten’s auto in order to “get some oil” from the car.

“Yes, I said it,” Williams said. “I am telling you the truth. I am not mad at you or Jack Batten or Mrs. Batten. You can send me to the electric chair and all I ask is that when you are through you turn my body over to my relatives.”

Williams and his attorneys were attempting to make the case that Batten was killed solely by the “rifle trap” that Williams had rigged at his cabin just west of Spokane.

The defense considered this a legitimate method of protecting his home. The prosecution, on the other hand, alleged the rifle trap had merely injured Batten, and Williams had fired the lethal shot himself while the injured Batten was driving away to get help.

Williams was only on the stand for a short time, but long enough to make a few other eyebrow-raising statements. He said he heard the rifle trap go off, and then he went to his cabin and got his rifle and saw Batten – a friend of Williams’ – attempting to drive away.

“When I came out of the cabin, I could see Batten leaning back in his seat,” Williams said. “He was dead then. I shot at the engine to stop the auto. When I saw Batten was driving away I did not think he had stolen anything from me. My only thought was to stop the car so I could see that Batten was dead.”

Batten’s widow testified that she and her husband had visited Williams at his place a few months earlier, and that Williams “warned them to be careful, as there was a dangerous gun at his place.”