Marin County
Death Records
Transcribed by Betty Wilson
KILLING OF BLASS TALAMONTAS
KILLING OF BLASS TALAMONTAS.—On May 2, 1879, Blass Talamontas was killed near Marshall, on Tomales bay, by Joe Luchonovich under the following circumstances: Blass and two men, returning from a ball at Marshall, stopped at the house where lived Joe and Big Mary. Some drinking was indulged in, when Blass became quarrelsome, and was requested by Joe to leave, as he did not desire to have any trouble. Blass left about noon, and went to his own house, about two hundred feet distant, but returned immediately. Joe seeing him coming, shut the front door where Blass tried to get admittance, saying at the same time, “I will kill you.” Not being able to gain admittance there, he went to the back door, and seizing the ax, which was lying close by, knocked in the upper panel of the door. Joe seized his gun which was standing close by, Blass then threw the ax through the hole in the door, again saying “I will kill you,” and Joe fired shooting him in the breast. On Luchonovich being examined, the Justice of the Peace decided it to be justifiable homicide.
KILLING OF ANTONIO FULTON
KILLING OF ANTONIO FULTON.—On the morning of June 26, 1879, Richard Moore, who had been in charge of the powder works near California City, and had been discharged for neglect, met Mr. Fulton, the manager of the works, who had crossed from San Francisco with his family in a sloop, and before his wife and children, shot Fulton through the head killing him instantly. He then placed the pistol to his own head, fired, and fell dead beside his victim.
MURDER OF KARL HERMAN KOHLER
MURDER OF KARL HERMAN KOHLER.—William A. Dever was committed to the State Prison about two years ago, on a charge of larceny. In an evil hour for all parties concerned, he was assigned to the worksho0p of the California Furniture Company of which Herman Kohler was foreman. Kohler seems to have been a man not entirely without faults. He had his own ideas of workshop discipline, and lived up to them. To how great an extent he aggravated Dever can never be definitely known, as the matter rests alone upon the testimony of Dever himself. But certainly there must have been some provocation, as it is not reasonable to suppose that a helpless convict would strike down his overseer, unless laboring under the sense of wrong. This much is certain, that Kohler frequently chided him for his mechanical incapacity and on one occasion reported him as a fit subject for discipline. During all this time Dever was more or less an invalid. He claimed that he was utterly unable, by reason of his infirmities, to perform manual labor. That Kohler continually hounded him on to do what he could not, that he menaced him with corporal punishment and so irritated him that finally, flesh and blood could stand it no longer. On the other hand it was shown on the trial that Kohler, though somewhat severe, was not more so than the circumstances demanded, and that so far as the work went he had assigned to Dever the lightest employment in the room, namely, sand-papering the furniture. On the day of the murder, February 6, 1879,—following Dever’s own account, Kohler approached his bench examining the work of the morning. Not being pleased with the inspection, he discharged a volley of abuse and left with the remark: “You ________ mutton-head. I’ll have you fixed this time.” He had walked away a short distance when Dever, in an uncontrollable fit of passion, sprang upon him, felling him to the ground with a hammer, and striking him twice as he lay prostrate on the floor. Kohler’s skull was fractured in two places. He lingered for three or four days, and died. The trial developed evidence about as follows: Messrs. Bowers and C.B. Darwin appeared for the people and H. Wilkins for the prisoner. The case was vigorously conducted on both sides, but the result was a foregone conclusion. Whatever palliation there might have been was swallowed up in the great necessity of an example to check the spirit of convict insubordination. And after an absence of a few minutes, the jury returned with a verdict of murder in the first degree. The law’s delay at length provided unavailing and the day for carrying the sentence into effect was finally fixed for January 16, 1880. Influential men at the East, including Speaker Randall, interested themselves to obtain executive clemency, but to no purpose. In jail, the conduct of Dever was various. He made several efforts to escape, two of which nearly succeeded. At times he had been
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