If you missed last Thursday's teaser, you can view it here.
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| Newspapers.com, Jackson Daily News, Jackson, Mississippi, Monday November 18, 1907, Page 7 |
James Alonzo 'Lon' Tapley (1866-1919) was a member of the Jackson, Mississippi Police Force for many years. He was a well-respected officer and member of the community who seemed to be instrumental in solving cases that others had been unable to solve. At the time of this murder, he had been a police officer for three years.
On May 17, 1907, just 6 months before the above photo was taken, Lon shot and killed a man who he found in his own house with his wife. Now let me be clear - this was a different time. Just being alone in a house with another man's wife was highly inappropriate. Even though there was no evidence of a physical relationship between Lon's wife and the gentlemen, it was still extremely improper. And this was not the first time Mr. Taylor had been in the house alone with Lon's wife.
H. W. Taylor was a chemist who worked for a fertilizer company just across the street from the Tapley home. While Mr. Taylor's friends claimed that his relationship with Mrs. Tapley was purely of a friendly character, Taylor had been seen leaving the Tapley home as late as 3 o'clock in the morning when the husband, Lon, was on night duty.
Lon had heard the rumors. He had even warned the chemist frequently to keep away from his home because he suspected that the relationship between Taylor and Mrs. Tapley was not proper. On that Friday morning, May 17th, Lon was sent on a call near where he lived and as he rode his horse by his home, he looked over and saw Mr. Taylor standing in the hall of his house, speaking with Mrs. Tapley. I'll let this newspaper article tell the full story:
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| Newspapers.com, Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, Mississippi, Saturday, May 18, 1907, Page 3 |
HERBERT TAYLOR IS KILLED BY POLICE OFFICER TAPLEY
A Sad Tragedy Growing Out of Family Matters—The Dead Man Had Hitherto Borne an Excellent Reputation.
Police Officer J. A. Tapley is confined in the city jail, while the dead body of Herbert W. Taylor lies at the Taylor Undertaking Parlors, pierced by a bullet from the officer’s pistol, the result of a sad tragedy in which the “unwritten law” will figure.
The tragedy took place at the home of Mr. Tapley, at 9:30 yesterday morning on South Farish street, and the killing was seen by no one except the participants in what has been the most sensational happening in this city in many years. The woman who was the cause of the tragedy had fled from the house and taken refuge in that of a neighbor when the shot was fired.
Story of the Killing.
The story of the killing, as gleaned from the neighbors and those who arrived on the scene a few moments after the fatal shot was fired, is as follows: Officer Tapley left his home at an early hour yesterday morning to report at police headquarters for his day’s assignment. The police court was in session and he was a witness in two cases, but while awaiting their trial, was sent on a call to that portion of the city in which his home is located. He is on the mounted force, and riding his horse along the street in front of his residence he saw Taylor and his wife standing in the hall. Tapley claims that he had repeatedly warned Taylor to stay away from his home, and cease interfering in his family affairs. He dismounted and started in the house, when Taylor, seeing him coming, called Mrs. Tapley’s attention. Tapley had gotten to the steps and Mrs. Tapley, when she saw him, exclaimed, "Yes, run for your life!" at the same time running into a room on one side of the hall, while Taylor ran into one on the other side, and bolted the door behind him.
Broke in the Door.
Tapley went to the door and tried to gain admittance, but found that it was bolted from the inside, and no response came from his demand for admittance. He then tried to shave it open with his shoulder, but found it too severe. Making a desperate kick, the latch gave way and the door swung open, the bottom panel of the door attesting the force of the kick.
Confront Each Other.
As the door flew open Tapley stepped inside and found Taylor at the foot of the bed, across the room, with a pocket knife in his hand, which he was attempting to open. The men must have only faced each other for a moment, in a very short space of time a shot rang out. Mrs. Tapley had, in the meantime, ran from the house and to that of a neighbor, only a few steps away, where she remained.
First On the Scene.
The first person to arrive on the scene of the killing was a young man who works at Dan Maybee’s building supplies shop, a few doors away. He was found Taylor lying flat of his back, near the foot of the bed gasping but that he died inside of ten minutes from the time he was shot. Tapley stepped out of the room, and seeing a passerby instructed him to mount his horse and go for the police. In a few moments two officers arrived, and one of them remained in the house with the body of the dead man, while the other escorted Tapley to the city jail.
Tapley’s Version of the Affair.
Tapley, when seen at the city jail while laboring under that excitement that would naturally exist under such trying circumstances, greeted the reporter of The Clarion Ledger pleasantly and said:
"I have very little to say for publication, only that I acted as any other man would under the circumstances. While I do not regret the act itself, I was forced to that. I do from the bottom of my heart regret the cause that made it necessary for me to kill a fellow man. It is hard to be forced to kill a man, especially under such and circumstances. For the little woman and her innocent children, who received the sad message, I have the greatest sympathy. But he brought it on himself, and I feel that my friends and the public will uphold me in my action."
The Other Side.
Friends of the dead man say that there was nothing improper in Taylor's conduct. That he was of that disposition that made him loyal to his friends, and being a warm friend of the Tapley family, he thought it duty to stop in on his way up town and bid Mrs. Tapley goodbye, as he intended to leave for Louisiana, where his wife and two little children had gone the evening before, and that he was simply on this mission when he met his death. They say that he often went to the Tapley home, which was just across the street from the Capital Fertilizer Factory, where he was employed as chemist, sitting on the front gallery, and would spend several minutes in friendly chat. He had packed his gripe, and leaving the office at the fertilizer factory, stated to his associates that he was going out to pay his respects to his friends, and that Tapley’s house being the nearest to his place of employment, was the first one at which he stopped. They claim that he was standing in the hall, and had just remarked to Mrs. Tapley how happy he would be the next day when he rejoined his wife and children at Baton Rouge. It was at that moment that Tapley came up and his wife seeing him with his hand on his pistol, told Taylor to "run for his life," while she did the same.
Something of the Dead Man.
Herbert W. Taylor has been a resident of this city about two years, coming here from Meridian, where he was employed as a chemist. For some time he held a position with the Mississippi Cotton Oil Company, but of late has been with the Capital Fertilizer Company. His friends and business associates were astounded when they heard that he had been killed under the above circumstances. They regarded him as a very high toned, honorable gentleman, strictly moral, devoted to his family, and the last man in the world who would get in such trouble. He was an Alabamian by birth, but married a Miss Young, of Baton Rouge, La., who was well known in this city in her girlhood days, as well as since she has resided here as the wife of Mr. Taylor, having been a pupil of Belhaven College, and graduated in the same class as did Miss Frances Manning. He is from a prominent family, one of his brothers being general manager of the Mexican Central railroad, another chief engineer of the Chesapeake & Ohio, and still another professor of chemistry in the University of Wisconsin.
Officer Tapley's Record.
J. A. Tapley, or "Lon," as he is known to his friends, is one of the best police officers on the Jackson force, and has always been regarded as a peaceful, law-abiding citizen. He is an officer in whom his superiors put explicit faith, and has been zealous in the discharge of his duties since he became a member of the force three years ago. This is the first trouble he has ever been in, in fact in the discharge of his duty, or as a private citizen, he has never been necessary for him to even strike a man with his hand. He believed he was justifiable in his act, and says he will so show when the time comes. He is from an old Jackson family, and has been well and favorable known in and around this city for years.
Mrs. Tapley's Condition.
Mrs. Tapley was in such a nervous and excited condition yesterday that it was impossible for her to give any connected account of the tragedy that so nearly affects her. So overcome was she by the dreadful happening that she was got to bed at a neighbor’s house, and told a reporter that it was impossible for her to give any account of the killing, but protested that she was guiltless. She referred the reporter to a friend who she said would detail the circumstances of the killing, which were about as given above. Mrs. Tapley is a small woman of pretty features, the mother of two handsome boys, and has been married to Mr. Tapley about fourteen years.
Was On Eve of Departure.
Taylor was to have left Jackson last night. It is said that he became possessed of a nice little sum of money a short while ago through a legacy and with this had purchased a plantation near Baton Rouge, and intended to spend his life as a planter with his wife and children. They had left the city the day before his death, to arrange things for his coming, while he remained behind to close up his affairs, and a happy reunion was anticipated be the wife instead of the sad message she received of his tragic death.
Preliminary Today.
Tapley will be given a preliminary hearing in the Police Court this morning at 10 o'clock, and is confident that he will be able to prove to the court his justification, while the friends of Taylor are equally as confident that the dead man was only making a friendly call.
Relatives Will Come.
Taylor’s body was taken directly from the Tapley residence to the H. M. Taylor Undertaking Parlors, where it was embalmed, and his family notified. Some of his relatives were expected last night, among them his wife’s father, ex-Sheriff Young, of Baton Rouge. - Transcription by Google Gemini
Lon was taken to jail immediately after the shooting. The next day, Saturday, May 18th, a preliminary hearing was held late into the night with many witnesses testifying. (Mrs. Tapley was not required to testify.) There were four hours of witness testimony and four more hours of arguments by two of the foremost criminal lawyers in the state pitted against each other. Shortly before midnight, the Police Justice announced that he would grant the defendant bail in the amount of $2,000. This was posted by three of Lon's friends, and he was required to appear at the circuit court session in September 1907.
Immediately after being granted his freedom, Lon was given a 10 day leave of absence by the Chief of Police. After the leave, he returned to the city and resumed duty as a patrolman. The sympathies of the police department were plainly and unmistakably with Lon. Several of his brother-officers were familiar with his family troubles during the last couple of years and were firmly convinced that Lon followed the unwritten law in killing Taylor.
So what was this unwritten law? According to Google Gemini, "The "unwritten law" referenced in historical legal contexts and news reports of that era was a social and legal defense. It traditionally referred to an unwritten legal doctrine or customary social code that morally or culturally justified a homicide committed by a husband, father, or brother who caught a man involved in an illicit sexual relationship with a female family member.
In practice during the 19th and early 20th centuries, men who invoked the "unwritten law" used it as a defense for vigilantism—arguing that killing someone to defend family honor or avenge a perceived violation of domestic sanctity was justifiable, and juries frequently acquitted defendants who used this defense."
What about Mrs. Tapley? She was the former Lida Chapman. She and Lon were married November 21, 1891 and were the parents of two sons when this incident occurred. When she saw Lon coming into the house that morning, she told Mr. Taylor to run for his life. She then fled the house and ended up at a neighbor's. She talked with news reporters about noon that same day and said that "Mr. Taylor had always conducted himself as a gentleman in my presence. Nothing that would smack of improper conduct ever existed between myself and Mr. Taylor."
Lon continued to work as a patrol officer and did his job well. Lida came home. September came and the newspapers came alive debating will he? or won't he? be indicted for the murder.
Then on September 10, this was published:
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| Newspapers.com, Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, Mississippi, Tuesday, September 10, 1907, Page 5 |
Police officer J.A. Tapley, who was charged with the killing of J. P. Taylor several months ago, was yesterday released from bond after the failure of the grand jury to bring in an indictment against him.
The unwritten law defense, along with the added self-defense excuse, won. Lon went on with his life. He and Lida remained together and had two more children. She passed away just two years later, in 1909. Lon remarried in 1911 to a woman named Fannie Carroll who was 26 years younger than him. They had a daughter together. At some point during this time, he left the Jackson police force, became a deputy sheriff and then was employed by the Illinois Central railroad as a special officer (detective). In 1913, he was elected Constable in the fifth district of Jackson. Lon was a beloved citizen of Jackson, a very successful police officer, husband and father.
Lon passed away suddenly on January 5, 1919:
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| Newspapers.com, Jackson Daily News, Jackson, Mississippi, Monday, January 06, 1919, Page 6 |
Oh and to answer the final question: Once I discovered Lon's full name of James Alonzo, I found him in my family tree as we are actually related!
