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MIAMI (UPIl - The defense In the Mossier murder trial succeeded in making a liar of a key prosecution witness Friday and then confidently rested its case without calling to the stand accused passion slayers Candy Mossier and Melvin Lane Powers.Asked why the 46-year-old Candy had not taken the stand as anticipated, one of the defense attorneys replied: Because we didn't feel It was necessary”TV glamour girl grandmother and Powers, her handsome 29-year-old nephew, are charged with the June 30. 19*4 murder of Candy’s 09-year-old husband. Jacques Mossier, who made millions In the banking and loan company business.Much of the state’s case was built on the testimony of convicts and ex-convicts who testified that Candy and Powers had shopped around for a professional killer to murder Mossier so they could get his money and continue an Incestuous love affair. It was such a witness the defense succeeded In tripping-up during the final round of testimony.Testimony disprovedThe showdown ci me with Deputy Sheriff Alois Spath. an Investigator for the prosecution, on the stand After muchsparring Spath admitted he had talked with convict Arthur A. Gnmsley after learning the defense was going to be able to disprove some of the testimony Grimsley had given tor the prosecution.Specifically, Grimsley told the jury that on June 15 or 16. 1962 Powers had offered him the price of two Cadillacs to kill Mossier But after Spath learned the defense had records showing Powers was In a Houston hospital on those dates. Grimsley. now serving time at the Arkansas State Prison, returned to the stand and changed the dates of the alleged offer to March 24-26, 1962Circuit Court Judge George E. Schulz, obviously annoyed by the development, granted a defense motion to strike from the record that part of Grimsley'$ testimony In which he corrected the dates.This leaves the Jury, which will begin deliberating the case next week, with Grimsley's statement that Powers made him an offer to kill Mossier at a time when the defense can prove Powers was hospitalized.During the course of the trial, now heading Into Its seventh week, the prosecution called 76 witnesses and the defensa presented 38.Boyfriend killer Hie defense tried to prove Mossier was a homosexual who likely was slain by one of his gay boyfriends.One of the most telling witnesses for the defense was a police officer who testified he saw a man covered with cuts and bruises and wearing a bloody shirt six miles from the Mossier apartment on the night of the murder.The officer Identified the man as Fred Roy Wcfssei, 29. a Coral Gables interior decorator, who has now dropped from sight A detective said he stopped questioning Weissel after his attorney obtained a writ of habeas corpus. Weissel was never arrested or questioned again and was discarded as a suspect In the Mossier case.iIicc
Newspaper Details
The Montana Standard
Butte, Montana, US
Sat, Feb 26, 1966
Page 6
Full Page
Clipped by
Ronald S.
USA 11 Apr 2017
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