Buckingham County Crimes: The Murder of Meade Hanes, Part XIII

Courtesy Daily Press.

Need to catch up? Click here to begin the series: Buckingham County Crimes: The Murder of Meade Hanes, Part I

The following day, May 15, the Daily Press revealed more about the response of the Hanes family, letting its readers know that Mott Glover’s case would be heard by a grand jury at Buckingham County courthouse.

According to the Daily Press:

On advice of counsel, the slayer has refrained from discussing the case, further than express penitence for his act, saying he guessed he was in a rather bad fix.

The young victim’s parents collapsed after they heard of the murder of their son, and it was some time before the father could be consoled and prevented from going to the Buckingham county jail in an effort to see Glover. This tragedy is deplored throughout this section of the state. From the best information obtainable it seems that Glover was in a jealous rage when he shot and killed his rival.

The same day, Richmond’s Times-Dispatch printed more details about Glover’s insanity plea, under the headline ALIENISTS MAY BE CALLED TO TESTIFY.

Already there is a change of feeling in progress as regards the punishment that should be meted out to Mott R. Glover, who killed Meade Hanes on May 5, and a number of things are now being told which tend to show that his mind was not right. It is said that Glover bought a bottle of laudanum on the night before the shooting and with a companion who came with him from Miss Holman’s house the same night he talked very strangely. It is thought that he bought the laudanum to take with suicidal intent.

Congressman Floyd, in agreeing to the time which was set for the trial, said counsel wanted time to have alienists summoned here to testify in the case.*

Although Aubrey E. Stroud is employed to assist in the prosecution, it is a noticeable fact that there is no feeling of animosity between the Glover and Hanes families. It is distressing in the extreme to see the great grief of both C. L. Glover and J. B. Hanes, father of the young man who did the killing and of the boy who was killed.

* Alienist is an archaic term for a psychiatrist or psychologist.

Coming Next: Buckingham County Crimes: The Murder of Meade Hanes, Part XIV