3 February 1935
Corsicana
Daily Sun
Corsicana,
Texas
Monday,
February 4, 1935
pg 1
CITY MARSHAL
OF WHITESBORO SLAIN
ATTEMPTING ARREST
MAN WHO DID
SHOOTING BEEN DRINKING;
USED RELIEF FUNDS
BUY LIQUOR
SHERMAN, Feb.
4 - (AP) - Harold
Locke, 27, a former
reformatory inmate,
today pleaded guilty
to a charge of
slaying Ches
Estes, Whitesboro city
marshal, and to
attacking a young
woman early yesterday
at Whitesboro.
Estes died
today in a Sherman
hospital of gunshot
wounds.
Locke was
ordered held without
bond following
examining trial and
charges were scheduled
to be presented
to a grand
jury later today.
Frank Stearns,
an employee of the
cafe where the
shooting occurred,
gave an eye-witness
version of the affair.
The young
woman whom Locke
admitted attacking,
was in the courtroom
when the prisoner was
brought in
under heavy guard.
She broke down
and began to sob. She
asked permission to
leave the courtroom
and did not testify.
Sheriff J.
Benton Davis testified
instead, telling the
story the woman told
him yesterday at
Whitesboro.
Lock was
indicted on charges of
murder and criminal
attack by the district
court grand jury,
which was in regular
session here. He was
ordered arraigned this
afternoon.
SHERMAN, Feb.
4 -(AP) - City
Marshall Ches Estes of
Whitesboro died in a
hospital here early
today of a gunshot wound
admittedly inflicted
by a 27-year-old
former reformatory
inmate.
Witnesses were
called into justice
court today for the
examining trial of the
man arrested for
shooting the officer in
a Whitesboro
restaurant early
yesterday.
Estes, 36, was
wounded fatally by
shotgun fire as he
entered the restaurant
to arrest a man in
connection with an
alleged attack on a
Whitesboro woman.
The man,
arrested later at his
home, told officers
and newspapermen that
he had been drinking
whiskey purchased
with money
obtained from the
county relief fund. He
admitted the shooting.
Customers of
the restaurant were
threatened with death
if they disclosed his
whereabouts as the man
barricaded
himself behind
a kitchen counter and
awaited Estes arrival.
The man
extinguished kitchen
lights, leveled a
shotgun over the
counter and fired as
Estes stepped into the
door.
Customers were unable
to warn Estes of the
man's presence.
Estes fell to
the floor but emptied
his pistol at the man
as he jumped through a
window and fled. Two officers
outside were
threatened by the man
and fired at him, but
missed.
Sheriff J.
Benton Davis and other
officers arrested the
man in a bed at his
home.
A woman said
the man seized her
near an alley as she
was returning from a
theater and attacked
her. He stifled
her screams by
choking her, she told
officers.
The Denison
Press
Monday,
February 4, 1935
pg.1
CHES ESTES,
CITY MARSHAL OF
WHITESBORO, MEETS
DEATH AT HANDS OF
DRUNKEN YOUTH
Blast From
Shotgun Is Death Cause
Citizens of
Whitesboro were at a
boiling point Monday
morning following the
death earlier in the
day of Ches Estes,
City Marshal after he
received mortal wounds
when shot by Tommy
Locke, Whitesboro
youth, Saturday night
as Estes attempted to
arrest him in a
restaurant on charges
of a woman who claimed
that Locke had
attempted to assault
her. Locke is
under arrest at
Sherman.
Estes was said
to have been shot as
he entered the
restaurant to find
Locke. The place
was in semi-darkness
and a single blast
from a double barreled
shotgun felled
Estes. He fired
several shots at Locke
as he ran through the
rear entrance to
escape.
Locke was
arrested later at his
home by Sheriff Benton
Davis, who said the
youth admitted having
shot Estes.
Locke said that he had
bought a quart of
whiskey with money he
had received...relief
office at Whitesboro
Sunday.
The death of
the Whitesboro peace
office brings to mind
several times he had
escaped death by guns
in the hands of
desperadoes. The
most outstanding was
the time that he had a
running gun battle
with 3 youths who
staged a series of
hijackings . . .
Ches Estes
encountered the trio
near Whitesboro and
had a running battle,
the 3 desperadoes
escaping and coming to
Denison to hijack Doc
Combest as he was
fishing at Munson
park. The
Combest car was later
found in Paris, Texas.
The 3
desperadoes were
finally caught,
Woolard near
Gordonville.
Morgan was captured
near Chickasha,
Oklahoma and Craighead
near Hugo.
Craighead
finally escaped from
jail at McAlester,
Oklahoma, September
11, 1934 and was not
heard from until
February 1, 1935, when
he was arrested near
Durant, Oklahoma and
returned to the jail
from which he escaped
Big Spring
Weekly Herald
Big Spring,
Texas
Friday,
February 8, 1935
pg 10
Whitesboro
Police Chief Is Shot Down
Harold Locke,
Former Reformatory
Inmate, Pleads Guilty
to Murder
SHERMAN (AP) -
City Marshal Ches
Estes, 36, of
Whitesboro, died
Monday of a gunshot
would admittedly
inflicted by a 27-year-old
former reformatory
inmate.
Witnesses were
called into justice
court Monday for
examining trial of a
man arrested for
shooting the officer
in a
Whitesboro restaurant
Sunday.
Harold Locke
pleaded guilty to the
charge of slaying
Estes. He was
ordered held
without bond. Charges
were
scheduled to
be presented to the
grand jury later
Monday.
WHITESBORO - A
shotgun charge struck
City Marshal Ches
Estes, 36, under the
heart when he walked
into the Depot Cafe here at
1:30 a.m. Monday to
arrest Tommy Locke,
27, alleged to have
attempted to attack a
woman in an alley a block
off the main street a
short time before.
Estes, taken
to St. Vincent's
Sanitarium at Sherman,
was in critical
condition. Physicians
said he probably would
not live
through the night.
In the county
jail at Sherman Monday
Locke said he fired
the shot, but that he
was so drunk at the
time, he
remembered
very little about it.
He denied the
allegation of
attempted attack. He
thought Estes was
going to arrest
him for
drunkenness, as he had
often done before,
Locke said.
Locke said he
bought a quart of
whiskey with 'relief'
money yesterday
afternoon, and that he
broke into the Waldro
Hardware Store
last night to get a
shotgun.
After Sheriff
Benton Davis and four
deputies came here and
arrested Locke at his
home for the shooting,
a physician reported to
Davis that the woman
was suffering from
numerous bruises and
scratches when he
examined her.
Locke bought
the whiskey with what
remained of a $3.50
relief check after he
paid a gas bill, he
said. He added
that he 'took
several drinks from
other fellows'
bottles, too."
Estes has been
city marshal and fire
marshal here six
years. Previously, he
had been fire chief.
He is one of the
best known
peace officers in this
section of Texas. He
is married, but has no
children, and is a
member of the
Baptist
Church.
His father, E.
G. Estes, is night
watchman here but was
not on duty last night
because of illness.
Locke fired
from the back of the
cafe as Estes walked
in, he said. Estes
fired at him five
times with a pistol
after falling,
but none of the
bullets hit him, Locke
said.
Denton
Record-Chronicle
Denton, Texas
Friday,
February 22, 1935
pg 4
Both Sides
Rest In Locke Trial
SHERMAN, Feb.
22, -(AP) - Testimony
was completed today in
the case of Harold
Locke, on trial here
for the admitted
slaying of Ches Estes,
Whitesboro city
marshal.
Court was
recessed while Judge
R. M. Carter prepared
his charges to the
jury.
Only two
defense witnesses were
placed on the stand -
the defendant's
sister, Miss Aline
Locke, and his mother,
Mrs. J. A. Locke.
They said he was drunk
when he came home
after the killing.
The state
called on rebuttal
witnesses, Roy
McDaniel, a deputy
sheriff, who
corroborated testimony
of other state
witnesses that
Locke was sober when
arrested at his home
shortly after the
shooting.
The Marshall
News Messenger
Marshall,
Texas
Saturday,
February 23, 1935
pg 1
DEATH PENALTY
IS GIVEN TEXAS YOUTH
WHO KILLED OFFICER
SHERMAN, Feb.
22 (UP) - Harold
Locke, 27, who bought
whiskey with relief
funds given him got
drunk, assaulted a
woman, and killed a city
marshal, was sentenced
later today to die in
the electric chair.
A jury in
Fifteenth District
Court deliberated only
22 minutes before
returning a verdict
that Lock was guilty
of murdering City Marshal
Ches Estes at
Whitesboro the night
of Feb. 3.
Estes was
killed by a shotgun
charge as he entered a
Whitesboro cafe in
search of Locke, after
being told of the
attack. Mrs. Estes, the
officer's wife, and
John Clark, 40,
had told him of the
report that Locke had
assaulted a young
woman.
At the time of
his arrest, a few
minutes after Estes
was slain, Locke told
officers that he
attacked the young woman
while drunk on liquor
which he had purchased
with county relief
money.
Mye Stearns,
cafe employee,
testified, however,
that Locke, a
Whitesboro man know to
towns-people as
"Tommy," was not drunk
at the time of
the murder. "He might have
been drinking,"
Stearns testified,
"but he was sober when
he entered the cafe."
The
Courier-Gazette
McKinney,
Texas
Tuesday,
February 26, 1935pg 1
MUST PAY WITH
LIFE FOR SLAYING
GRAYSON OFFICER
HAROLD "TOMMY"
LOCKE FOUND GUILTY
IN SHERMAN COURT.
Harold "Tommy"
Locke, 27 must pay
with his life for the
slaying Feb. 3 of Ches
Estes, Whitesboro city
marshal.
The death verdict
was returned after
only 22 minutes of
deliberation Friday
afternoon by a
fifteenth district
court jury at Sherman.
Tradition of
more than 30 years
standing was broken
when Locke was given
the extreme penalty.
During the past 30 years no white
man has received the
death penalty for a
crime committed in
Grayson County, a
check of court records
reveals.
The young
defendant received the
sentence without a
visible show of
emotion, but his aged
mother was near
collapse as she was led
from the courtroom.
The widow of the slain
marshal and other
relatives shook hands
with members of the jury.
Estes was
fatally wounded the
morning of Feb. 3 when
he attempted to arrest
Locke in the Depot
Cafe at Whitesboro for
an alleged
criminal attack upon a
young Whitesboro
woman. The condemned
man has also been
indicted on a rape
charge.
Lubbock
Morning Avalanche
Lubbock, Texas
Tuesday,
February 26, 1935
pg 2
New Trial
Motion Is Filed For Slayer of
Ches Estes
SHERMAN, Feb.
25 (AP) Attorneys for
Harold Locke,
sentenced to die for
the slaying of Marshal
Ches Estes at
Whitesboro, have filed a
motion for a new
trial.
The motion
alleged that Judge R.
M. Carter committed a
material error in
admitting testimony of
John Clark over
objection of
defense counsel. Clark
had testified that the
defendant had made a
criminal attack on a
young
Whitesboro
woman.
It was while
City Marshal Estes was
trying to arrest young
Locke for this alleged
attack that he was
shot to
death in a
Whitesboro cafe Feb.
3.
Longview
News-Journal
Longview,
Texas
Sunday, March
3, 1935
pg 1
LOCKE IS
DENIED NEW TRIAL IN SLAYING OF
WHITESBORO MARSHAL
SHERMAN, Tex.,
March 2. (AP) -
District Judge R. M.
Carter - Saturday
overruled a motion for
a new trial for
Harold Locke,
sentenced to die for
the slaying February 3
of Ches Estes,
Whitesboro city
marshal. The judge
granted
defense attorneys 60
days in which to file
a statement of facts.
Corsicana
Daily Sun
Corsicana,
Texas
Wednesday,
November 27, 1935
pg 13
Death Sentence
Grayson County Man Is
Reversed
AUSTIN, Nov.
27 - (AP) The Court of
Criminal Appeals today
reversed and remanded
the conviction of
Harold
Locke,
sentenced to death in
Grayson county in the
slaying of Ches H.
Estes, city marshal of
Whitesboro.
The slaying
occurred Feb. 3, 1935,
as Estes allegedly
sought to arrest Locke
on the oral complaint
of
a citizen that
Locke was involved in
a criminal assault.
The Appeals Court
ruled introduction of evidence by
the state tending to
show commission of
another crime
constituted error and
that the
testimony was
hear-say.
Corsicana
Daily Sun
Corsicana,
Texas
Friday, March
13, 1936
pg 15
Jury in
Sherman Murder Trial Near
Completion Today
SHERMAN, March
13 - (AP) - A jury was
nearly completed today
for the trail of
Harold Locke on a murder charge
for the slaying of
Ches Estes, Whitesboro
city marshal. Eleven
jurors had been
selected at noon recess
and the panel was
expected to be
completed during the
afternoon.
The special
venire of 125 was
exhausted, as well as
18 extra veniremen
summoned. The sheriff
was ordered to
bring in 10 more.
City Marshal
Estes was slain in
Feb., 1935 in a
Whitesboro cafe when
he sought to arrest
Locke.
The officer
had been informed
Locke had criminally
attacked a Whitesboro
woman.
Corsicana
Daily Sun
Corsicana,
Texas
Saturday,
March 14, 1936
pg 9
Temporary
Insanity Alleged in Sherman Trail
for Slaying
SHERMAN, March
14 - (AP -
Witnesses for the
defense today
contended Harold Locke
was
temporarily
insane when he is
alleged to have shot
and killed Ches Estes,
Whitesboro City
marshal Feb. 3, 1935.
Locke had
consumed more than a
pint of whiskey and
had taken several
sedative tablets,
witnesses said.
Dr. Vernon
Tuck testified the
combination might
produce temporary
insanity in the
average person.
Locke was on
trial for the second
time on charges of
slaying the officer.
The state's
case was concluded
early today.
The
Whitewright Sun
Whitewright
Texas
Thursday,
April 16, 1936
pg 2
DENISON
SLAYING TRIAL TO OPEN ON
APRIL 23
SHERMAN - . .
. Birge saved Harold
Locke, convicted
Whitesboro slayer,
from the electric
chair in a recent trail
when he obtained a
ninety-nine-year
sentence for the man
charged with slaying
Ches Estes,
Whitesboro city
marshal, in February,
1935.
The
Whitewright Sun
Whitewright,
Texas
Thursday, May
14, 1936
pg 8
MURDERER TO GO
TO PRISON THIS
WEEK
The final
episode in the brutal
slaying of Ches Estes,
Whitesboro city
marshal, and trials of
Harold Locke, will
be ably
enacted in a few days,
probably this week,
when Bud Russell,
State prison agent,
Transfers the
28-year-old convicted
murderer to Huntsville
to serve his penalty
of 99 years at hard
labor.
In sullen
mood, Locke said he
wished "they would
rush the transfer."
Alone in the death
dell of the count jail
in Sherman
for thirteen
months, he welcomes a
chance to work
alongside "someone he
can talk to."
Late Friday R.
M. Carter, presiding
judge, formally
sentenced Locke upon
the verdict returned
March 16 by a
15th District
Court jury.
Estes was
slain in February,
1935, when he went to
arrest Locke in a
depot cafe at
Whitesboro, after
being informed that Locke had
raped a young
Whitesboro woman.
Locke, hiding in a
kitchen, killed the
officer with a
shotgun.
Locke was
convicted and
sentenced to death
when he was first
tried in the 15th
District Court,
but a
higher court
reversed the decision
because of a
technicality.
Convict
Record, Texas State
Penitentiary, 1875 -
1945
at Huntsville, Walker
County, Texas
Texas
Department of
Health
Bureau Of
Vital Statistics
Certificate
of Death
#23261
Place of
Death:County
|
Harris
|
Usual
Residence
|
Texas Harris
|
City or Town
|
Houston
|
Hospital or
Institution
|
4625
Doolittle Blvd
|
Street
Address
|
4625
Doolittle Blvd |
Name
|
Harold Locke
|
Date of
Death
|
5-3-50
|
Sex
|
Male
|
Race
|
White
|
Marriage
Status
|
Married
|
Date of
Birth
|
Feb. 20,
1908
|
Age
|
42yr 2mo
13yd
|
Usual
Occupation
|
Service
Station
|
Kind of
Business
|
Service
Station
|
Birthplace
|
Whitesboro,
Texas
|
Father's
Name &
Birthplace
|
Alex
Locke
Tenn
|
Mother's
Name &
Birthplace
|
Nan Ida
Newsom
Ark
|
Informant
|
Mrs. R. H.
Powell
|
Cause of
Death
|
Suicide
|
Burial
|
Removal
|
Date
|
5-5-50
|
Name of
Cemetery
|
Whitesboro
Cemetery
|
Location
|
Whitesboro,
Texas
|
Funeral
Director's Signature
|
Pat H. Foley
& Co.
|
|
|
|
