HIGH POINT CONFIDENTIAL: Getting away with murder-Did 1950 slaying suspects kill elderly storekeeper?
Mar. 25—HIGH POINT — e can't help but admire the courage of James A. Turner, a 78-year-old High Point man who simply tried to protect his small grocery store one night more than 70 years ago.
Nor can we help but abhor the actions of the two men who tried to rob the elderly storekeeper's business, who panicked when he arrived on the scene, and who apparently ended up killing him.
And finally, we can't help but be disappointed that justice was never served in this case, and someone — possibly even someone High Point police had in custody at one point — got away with murder.
The year was 1950. Around midnight on Sept. 16, Turner was sleeping in a side room at Turner's Store, a small, neighborhood supermarket on Ward Street, when he heard someone breaking in the store's front door. He quickly rose and hurried out into the main room of the store, apparently wielding nothing more than a flashlight.
A pair of men, ages unknown but surely much younger and stronger than Turner, appeared surprised to find someone in the store at such a late hour, Turner later told police. One of them punched Turner in the face. When Turner blew a small police whistle he carried with him for emergencies such as this, the other thug grabbed the whistle and choked the storekeeper.
The two men then ran outside to a waiting car — without the cash they'd hoped to steal — and sped away. Turner told police he thought he'd seen a third man in the vehicle.
The next day, after police had investigated the burglary and assault, Turner suffered what he thought was a mild heart attack, but he quickly recovered and refused treatment. A short time later, it happened again, and this time he died en route to the hospital. The county coroner performed an autopsy and attributed Turner's death to a blood clot on his brain, caused by the previous night's attack.
"Criminal homicide," he determined.
Unfortunately, clues were scant, as were witnesses. Neighbors came running when they heard Turner's police whistle, but the culprits were gone by the time they got there.
Days turned into weeks without an arrest. Finally, nearly a month after Turner's death, The High Point Enterprise reported murder warrants had been drawn for two men — whose names were being withheld — whom police had apparently been looking for in connection with the killing.
A third man, also unnamed, had been picked up a couple of weeks earlier as a material witness, The Enterprise reported. Was he the third man Turner thought he'd seen in the getaway car? We don't know.
Two weeks after those warrants were drawn, the two men — having learned of the police manhunt — showed up unannounced at the High Point Police Department. They were Edward A. Eason, 32, and Jake Strickland, 23, both of Selma.
The two suspects were charged with murder and attempted burglary and were jailed here without bond. The Enterprise published their mug shots. They confessed to nothing, however, and heeded their attorney's advice by refusing to answer any questions.
For the next few days, the only news was that there was no news. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for Eason and Strickland, but it didn't happen.
"Defendants In Killing Still In Jail," The Enterprise headline read. That's how newspapers report that there's nothing to report.
Then, as suddenly as the suspects had shown up, they were released, absolved of the murder and burglary charges.
And why?
"Lack of evidence," The Enterprise reported, explaining that investigating officers had told prosecutor Louis J. Fisher the evidence needed to convict Eason and Strickland had never materialized.
Did the two men get away with murder? We'll never know for sure, but it's possible they walked away from a crime without getting what they deserved.
Either way, James A. Turner never got what he deserved, either — justice.
jtomlin@hpenews.com — 336-888-3579
