On Sunday night, December 23, 1923, an unknown assassin shot Silas Moody, 34-year-old farmer, with a shotgun through the window pane of his home at Macomb in Wright County, Missouri, while the victim's little baby played at his feet. Moody's wife and mother-in-law were also in the room at the time. The blast virtually blew Moody's head off, and he lingered just an hour or two before dying. A Springfield newspaper called the crime "one of the most cold-blooded murders in the annals of the Ozarks."
Suspicion quickly settled on 35-year-old O. R. Millsap and 25-year-old Earnest "Benny" Johnson, neighbors who had been feuding with Moody recently. According to later evidence, the source of the dispute was that Moody had recently discovered a still on or near his property that Millsap and Johnson were running, and they were afraid he was going to turn them in. The two suspects were arrested on Christmas Day and released on $2,000 bond each pending their appearance for preliminary hearings.
After their preliminary hearings, Millsap and Johnson were held in the Wright County Jail at Hartville until early January of 1924, when they were formally indicted for murder by a grand jury. After that, they received changes of venue to Laclede County, where Millsap's trial began in early November of 1924. He was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Meanwhile, Johnson got his case severed from Millsap's, and his trial began at Lebanon in May of 1925. The trial ended in a hung jury, but on retrial in September, he was convicted and also sentenced to life in prison.
Both Millsap and Johnson, however, were paroled by the Missouri governor in 1933, after serving only 8+ and 7+ years respectively.
4 comments:
Thank you for the information you share on my post but several of us would like to know why the Governor paroled them? Do you by chance know why?
I found a brief newspaper article about this published at the time they were paroled, but no reason was given--just that seven prisoners, including these two, had been paroled by the governor. The summaries of their prison records, which are online at the Mo. State Archives website, also do not give a reason. Perhaps their entire prison records, if they exist, might give more information.
Both men were Pardoned by Governor Lloyd Stark.
O.R. in 1938 & Earnie in 1939.
One of the signatures obtained by Earnie was that of Judge Skinner of Bolivar, Missouri. The same Judge that appointed the Grand Jury in 1923. He noted," as I recall it the evidence was entirely circumstantial. I think I recommended a parole years before he was paroled"
O.R.'s application most definitely had the words "plead guilty" crossed out.
In fact, names acquired by both men needed as a means of confirming their stature and vouching for their reputation was quite impressive as well as interesting. Many surnames we see in the court transcript and or surnames involved in the event.
O.R. had mostly farmers laborers (Crewse, McIntosh, Coday, Moody, & Gray)
Earnie had more prominent businessmen names.
I have studied this case for years (off and on). My Grandfather was O.R. Millsap. His mother was a Gray. We are also related to McIntosh, Coday's, & Moody's. O.R.'s 3rd wife (my Grandmother) was Clella Moody (cousin to the man he went to prison for murdering). He married her after his prison time. It is definitely a tangled web for genealogy.
The event happened 100 years ago. I have a photo of O.R. & Earnest while they were in prison. Jewelry box made while in Jeff City. Interviews from various members of the family and their side of the story. Im data driven so I look for facts, we all know family lore can be helpful but not always exact.
Rather he was or he wasn't guilty, my Grandfather never plead guilty and he never denied that he made threats, never denied that he disliked Silas, never denied that he asked Della to keep one of his comments to herself.
He died when I was six. I only remember a man who could sing me songs, bring me kitty cats, and pinch my nose. I have his Bible. It has lots of little papers in it with Bible verses printed or notes to himself ...he wrote two songs while in prison too.
Diana, It's always interesting to hear from people who have a family connection to the stuff I write about. You've obviously studied this case a lot more than I have and know a lot more about it than I do. My only sources were reports that were written in newspapers at the time, but, as you suggest, that doesn't necessarily mean they're true.
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