The Official Report of the Trial of Charles Louis Tucker for...2 vols

1907. Tucker, Charles Louis. The Official Report of the Trial of Charles Louis Tucker for the Murder of Mabel Page: In the Superior Court of Massachusetts. 2 volumes. Boston: Wright & Potter Print. Co., 1907. Publisher's original cloth, with stamped spines, moderate shelfwear. Staining to volume 2 spine. Good. $150. * A detailed, primary source account of a high-profile case from the early 20th century, including transcripts of the arguments made by the prosecution and defense; complete records of all evidence and statements given by witnesses during the Superior Court proceedings and documentation of the jury's decision and the ensuing sentencing. Mabel Page was found stabbed to death in her bedroom in Weston, Massachusetts, on March 31, 1904. The initial investigation briefly considered suicide, but evidence like a knife wound to the heart and the presence of a mysterious note found near the body led police to investigate it as a murder. Charles L. Tucker, a young man from nearby Auburndale who had previously worked as a railroad ticket agent, was arrested a few days later. The case against him was largely circumstantial, including the discovery of pieces of a broken knife that prosecutors argued were used to commit the murder. Tucker was convicted of murder in January 1905 and sentenced to death by electrocution. He maintained his innocence until his execution on June 12, 1906, at Charlestown prison. The case generated significant public interest, with the courtroom and approaches "choked by the assembled throng" during preliminary hearings.