Text from the St. Cloud Daily Times, June 7, 1916. Jilted and brooding because of it, James Fitzpatrick, a Duluth street-railway conductor, shot and instantly killed Sadie Johnson, age 20, a school teacher, just as the latter had stepped from the train at Kimball shortly after 3:00 p.m. yesterday afternoon. With cold deliberation, Fitzpatrick then placed the muzzle of his .38-caliber pistol to his own temple and pulled the trigger twice in quick succession. Both bullets entered the brain and he too died instantly. There were only two witnesses to the terrible deed. They were F.E. Smith, editor of the Kimball Kodak, and John Mackereth, a drayman. According to the stories told by the two men, the girl got off the train at the Kimball Depot. She went into the waiting room and in a few moments came out. Fitzpatrick was on the train. He got off and followed the girl. As she came from he door of the waiting room he drew the pistol and fired. The bullet penetrated the girl’s heart. She fell to the platform without turning around. When Fitzpatrick saw that the bullet had done its deadly work, he placed the end of the barrel to his own head and fired two shots in rapid succession. Both shots penetrated the skull between the temple and the ear. He fell a few feet away from the girl. The murder and suicide were executed with such dispatch that the witnesses did not have time to interfere. Not a word was spoken by the insanely jealous suitor. As soon as the bloody deed had been done, Smith and Mackereth sent in an alarm. The sheriff, coroner and county attorney were summoned from St. Cloud. Dr. Panauli, the coroner; Dr. J.B. Dunn, deputy coroner; Deputy Sheriff Frank Dettenburg and Judge of Probate J.B. Himsl went to the place, the latter going for County Attorney Ahles. An inquest was held last night and a number of witnesses were examined. The verdict returned was murder and suicide. The bodies were removed to Eden Valley immediately after the inquest, and the funeral arrangements will be made by the relatives of both parties. According to testimony of the girl’s father, the young couple had been companions more or less during their younger days. Fitzpatrick had left and went to Duluth, both of his parents being dead. He had been en-gaged as a conductor on the street-railway of Duluth for the past four years. The girl in the meantime had been educated at the St. Cloud Normal School and after completing her education she had started teaching. She had contemplated attending the summer school at the Normal this year, for the purpose of fitting herself in special subjects. Fitzpatrick came back to his old neighborhood a week ago. he had talked strangely, indicating that he was morose. People in the vicinity of Eden Valley had noted his strange manner but attached little importance to it. During the past week, Fitz-patrick had gone to the home of the girl several times. In each instance he had pressed his suit, but the girl firmly declined. He threatened to take his own life. “He had told my sister that he would never hurt her,” her brother said. Once he came to the home and told the girl of his intention to take his life. He seemed to be under great mental pain. The girl became fearful of him and sought an opportunity to get away. “She bought a ticket to Kimball and started to leave on the train,” her brother said. “She wanted to get up there where she thought she would be safe.” But just as the train pulled out of the station at Eden Valley, Fitzpatrick, who had become aware of the girl’s intention, jumped on the steps. Fitzpatrick went into the smoker and rode for a few miles. Then he arose and went into the car where the girl was seated. He talked earnestly and appeared extremely nervous. Fitzpatrick went back to the smoker. Hoping that she could avoid him, the girl got off the train at Kimball and went into the waiting room and remained in hiding. The train pulled out and she started to leave with the intentions of going to her boarding house. At the door she was startled by another appearance of Fitz-patrick. Without a word, he lifted the pistol, aimed at her and fired, the girl fell. Fitzpatrick observed that he had executed his murderous desire. Then he fired two bullets into his own head. The action took place in less than thirty seconds of time. Sadie Johnson was the daughter of Wm Johnson, a prominent farmer living two and a half miles south of Eden Valley. The elder Johnson was unable to talk to a reporter for the Times this morning. At the inquest last night, Frank E. Smith said: “He grasped her with his left hand as if to pull her toward him. At the same time he drew the revolver and with it close to the girl he fired. The girl reeled a few times and fell.” Smith said he was in plain sight and he put the pistol to his own head and fired. He did not drop until the second shot was fired. John Mackereth, the other [witness], said he heard the shot behind him and turned in time to see Fitzpatrick shoot himself. He fell first, the witness said. He moved sightly after the train crew came in. The bodies were left in the waiting room until the coroner and county officials arrived. Mr. Johnson, father of the girl, was also on the stand. There are eight in the family. The daughter, he said, had left the home at 12:30 noon, with her sister, 24 years of age. The disappearance of the sister after the shooting was not accounted for. The jurors were out but a short time when the signed verdict of murder and suicide was returned. The jurors were George Linn, Frank Casser, C.D. Brower, Bud Shoemaker, W. Kingstead and E.L. Greeley. It developed at the inquest that Fitzpatrick carried a ring on his watch chain. This evidently had been intended for the girl or had been returned to him. Two letters were also found, one from him to the girl and another written by the girl in which she rejected him. Fitzpatrick’s letter was one of appeal, in which he threatened to take his life but did not threaten the girl. There had been correspondence and he had come twice during the past year to see her. The father expressed no feeling of animosity against him.
