Title supplied by cataloger.; Photograph was edited for publication purposes. While investigators were searching for information on Mary Busch James' death, they uncovered damning information regarding her husband, Robert S. James. Included were the following facts: James he had been married at least five times; at least one of his other wives had drowned in a bathtub after being heavily insured; his first marriage to Maud Duncan ended in divorce when his wife accused him of being sadistic and engaging in perverted sexual practices; he skipped out on his second wife when her father found out he had gotten his young daughter pregnant; while on a honeymoon with his third wife Winona Wallace, she apparently lost control of the car and it careened off the road - she survived the accident, only to die in a suspicious bathtub drowning accident; soon after, he seduced his 18-year-old niece, Lois Wright, and moved with her to Los Angeles in search of wife number four; had his fourth marriage annulled when his wife refused to undergo a physical examination; wife number five was Mary Busch, who also died under suspicious circumstances - snake poisoning and drowning in the family fishpond. After Mary Busch's death, Robert James continued his relationship with his niece; during the investigation into Busch's death, police arrested James and charged him with incest, a felony under California law - he was convicted and received a sentence of 50 years. While in custody, police found James' accomplice in Busch's death - a man by the name of Charles H. Hope, who turned states evidence and testified against James, relating the gruesome details of Busch's murder. Ultimately, Hope pled guilty to first-degree murder and received a life sentence. James' trial lasted five weeks, after which the jury returned with a guilty verdict and sentenced him to death by hanging. On May 9, 1942, Robert "Rattlesnake" James was the last man to be hanged in California. Photograph article dated July 2, 1936 reads, "Grace Yarnell is shown on the stand in court here today at the trial of Robert James when she testified that James kissed her and attempted to make love to her while his fifth wife, Winona James, lay at the point of death in a Rocky Mountain hospital. James fifth bride was found drowned in a bathtub later."
Type
Image
Format
1 photographic print :b&w ;26 x 21 cm. Photographic prints
James, Robert S.--Trials, litigation, etc Trials (Murder)--California--Los Angeles Trials--California--Los Angeles Witnesses--California--Los Angeles Murder--California--La Can~ada Flintridge Uxoricide--California--La Can~ada Flintridge Los Angeles Evening Herald and Express photographs Herald-Examiner Collection photographs
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