Inez Palmer

Case record: Inez Palmer

People

• Inez Palmer — defendant; lived at the Stout farmhouse and pleaded guilty to a first-degree murder indictment; sentenced to life in prison.
• William Stout — victim; was 65; was missing and later found dead in a well on his farm; a well-to-do farmer and father of Arthur Stout.
• Sarah Stout — victim; was 60; wife of William Stout; stepson’s mother relative to Arthur; her body was found partially burned in her own home; she had sworn out a warrant against Arthur Stout.
• Arthur Stout — defendant’s boyfriend; was convicted and sentenced to life; was described as the sole heir named in William Stout’s handwritten will; alleged and confirmed to be connected to both murders.
• Arthur Stout, Jr. — witness on the stand; informed the prosecutor that Arthur Stout was proposed as the idea of murdering Sarah Stout because she had him arrested for living with Inez Palmer without the benefit of marriage.
• Deputy Ray Cox — deputy of Sheriff Maude Collins; took part in examining footprints.
• Sheriff Maude “Sheriff Maude” Collins — sheriff; led the investigation into the disappearance of William Stout and the earlier murder of Sarah Stout.
• Fletcher Collins — husband of Sheriff Maude Collins; was shot and killed by a man he’d pulled over on a speeding violation.
• Manville Perry — young neighbor; noticed the living room door of the William and Sarah Stout farmhouse open.
• Local Prosecuting Attorney Blake — called in during the Sarah Stout investigation.
• Dr. O. S. Cox — medical professional who studied the scene and post mortem findings.
• Dr. A. E. James — medical professional who studied the scene and post mortem findings.
• Mrs. Lucy Gibbs — witness who testified that Sarah Stout feared Arthur would kill her.
• Artie and William — young grandsons of William Stout; provided a clue that solved the case.
• Noah and Burn — William Stout’s other two sons, cut off in William Stout’s handwritten will.
• William Stout’s other mentioned relations — grandchildren were referenced as being cut off by the handwritten will.

Background

Inez Palmer lived at William Stout’s Axtel Ridge place. She told the sheriff that the last time she saw William Stout, he was mending fences there, and she had heard her boyfriend’s father had headed out west and was acting strangely before he left Vinton County.

Sheriff Maude Collins investigated the murder of local woman Sarah Stout, whose body was found partially burned in her own home, with the cause of death determined to be strangulation.

Sarah Stout was last seen alive in McArthur, two days prior, when she swore out a warrant against Arthur Stout, her stepson.

Sarah, age 60, and her husband, age 65, were recently wed and were respected, well-to-do farmers in the county. Sarah feared that Arthur would kill her because of her actions.

It was cited that Arthur was involved in illicit relationship with Inez Palmer, with Inez Palmer co-habiting with him for three years on his family farm about three miles east of Sarah and William’s farm. It was rumored that Inez and Arthur had had a child since they had been living together.

William Stout immediately called for the arrest of his son and said he would demand his punishment.

Before his own death, William Stout hired the law firm of Woolley and Rowland to defend his son.

When Arthur was taken to jail, Palmer became a housekeeper for the elder Stout.

At the time of her own arrest, Inez Palmer was in the Stout farmhouse with Artie and William Stout while Arthur was behind bars.

The offence

Murder of Sarah Stout

On November 11, 1926, young neighbor Manville Perry noticed the living room door of William and Sarah Stout’s farmhouse open and was shocked by the sight he saw. Sarah Stout’s body lay in front of the living room stove.

Her face, neck and portions of her body were burnt and charred beyond recognition. One arm was extended on the floor in front of her and was not burnt, suggesting that she had not tried to extinguish the flames of the fire. All her hair was burned off except where her head came in contact with the floor. It was obvious to the gathered group that the body had been placed in front of the stove.

Local Prosecuting Attorney Blake was called in, and he and Dr. O. S. Cox and Dr. A. E. James studied the scene. Their post mortem concluded that Mrs. Stout died of strangulation, not burns. The body was then covered with kerosene and set fire, they declared.

Sarah Stout was last seen alive in McArthur, two days prior, when she had sworn out a warrant against Arthur Stout, her stepson.

Arthur Stout was alleged to have slain Sarah Stout because she chided him for his relations with Inez Palmer. It was alleged that he killed the woman and then attempted to burn the body.

Arthur Stout, Jr. informed the prosecutor on the stand that his father was the person who proposed the idea of murdering Sarah Stout because she had him arrested for living with Inez Palmer without the benefit of marriage.

Murder of William Stout

Inez Palmer later told the sheriff that the last time she saw William Stout, he was mending fences at his Axtel Ridge place. She had heard her boyfriend’s father had headed out west.

Sheriff Maude and her deputy Ray Cox followed patched fences and found a lunch pail under a tree about two and a half miles from the house. The pail contained a handwritten will. In the will, William Stout cut off his other two sons, Noah and Burn, and named Palmer’s boyfriend Arthur as the sole heir. The document was not signed by any witnesses.

Sheriff Maude compared footprints leading to and from the dinner bucket. She retrieved a pair of William Stout’s shoes and found they fit exactly to the footprints, but the footprints were not as deep in the soil as those of Deputy Cox. The sheriff concluded that the tracks had been made by a person much closer to her own weight rather than William Stout.

Sheriff Maude returned to the Stout farmhouse and retrieved the shoes, then compared and examined the contents of the house, which showed that William Stout never took any of his belongings. She then went to the Vinton County National Bank and presented the will to the cashier, where Mr. Stout maintained his account. Sheriff Maude compared the handwriting of the will to that of William Stout’s canceled checks and found no match.

Sheriff Maude and Deputy Cox returned the next morning to search the Stout farm for any trace of William Stout’s body. They conversed with William Stout’s two young grandsons (Artie and William), who informed them that Inez Palmer had told them the water behind the Stout house was not fit for consumption and that they had best just stay clear of the well.

The sheriff and deputy promptly arrested Inez Palmer so they could search the premises without interference. William Stout’s body was discovered in the well behind the house. William Stout had suffered severe head trauma caused by a blunt instrument.

Inez Palmer confessed that she killed William Stout because he made advances toward her. She also confessed to covering up the crime by putting on a pair of her victim’s shoes, making footprints near the repaired fences, and forging the will placed in the dinner pail under a tree.

Arthur Stout confirmed Palmer’s confession and declared that she had killed Sarah Stout. Arthur Stout stated that Palmer had instructed him to burn the body.

Investigation

Sheriff Maude Collins investigated the murder of Sarah Stout by inspecting the scene and learning that strangulation caused death, not burns.

When William Stout disappeared after he was mending fences, Sheriff Maude Collins and Deputy Ray Cox followed the trail of patched fences and investigated a lunch pail found under a tree with a handwritten will inside. The handwriting of the will did not match William Stout’s canceled checks at Vinton County National Bank.

Sheriff Maude Collins examined footprints and shoes and concluded the footprints were not deep enough for a person the size of William Stout, based on the comparison made with Deputy Cox’s stature and the depth of tracks.

She then searched the Stout home and found that items William would have taken with him were still there.

After confronting the evidence, Sheriff Maude Collins found William Stout’s body in a well behind the house and discovered severe head trauma caused by a blunt instrument.

Arrest

Arthur Stout was arrested in relation to Sarah Stout’s murder.

Inez Palmer was arrested by Sheriff Maude Collins and Deputy Ray Cox after the grandsons reported that Palmer had warned them away from the well behind the house. The arrest was made so that premises could be searched without interference.

Trial

Arthur Stout and Inez Palmer were tried for the murders.

• Arthur Stout was found guilty of second degree murder.
• Inez Palmer was found guilty of first degree murder in April of 1927.

Arthur Stout, Jr. testified that his father proposed the idea of murdering Sarah Stout because Sarah Stout had him arrested for living with Inez Palmer without the benefit of marriage.

Arthur Stout confirmed Palmer’s story after learning of her confession and declared that she had killed Sarah Stout, and that she had instructed him to burn the body.

Sentencing

Inez Palmer pleaded guilty to a first-degree murder indictment and was sentenced to life imprisonment in the women's reformatory at Marysville. The sentence followed a statement by Judge Darby prefacing the sentence with:

“mercy should be extended the woman that she might escape the electric chair.”

The statement continued in the article with:

“She will have, however, no hope of pardon or parole.”

Inez Palmer was described as “an attractive woman of 24” and was sentenced at Vinton county court late yesterday.

The plea and sentence date included the timing of April 22 in the reported court news item.

Her sentencing is also given as life in prison on April 21, 1927.

Arthur Stout was also serving a life term in Ohio penitentiary for implication in the murder of his stepmother, Sarah Stout, described as his second wife of William. The article stated that Arthur Stout had hope of parole or pardon.

Appeals

No appeals were described.

Outcome

William Stout’s body was found in a well behind his house. He died from severe head trauma caused by a blunt instrument.

Sarah Stout’s body was found in front of the living room stove, with burning and kerosene involved after death. Post mortem concluded death was due to strangulation.

Inez Palmer pleaded guilty and received a life sentence. Arthur Stout was found guilty of second degree murder and received a life term.

Aftermath

Sheriff Maude Collins completed her elected term as sheriff. She was later elected Clerk of Courts and worked as a matron at the Columbus State School until she retired. She passed away in 1972 at the age of 78.

A detail of the case narrative described Maude Collins achieving national fame when a case she solved was reported in Master Detective magazine.

Inez Palmer’s sentence was described as ending “a sordid tragedy of unlawful love and of murder,” and the article described the case as a matter of unlawful love and murder brought to a close in Vinton county court late yesterday.

Other details

• In the handwritten will found in the lunch pail, William Stout cut off his other two sons Noah and Burn, and named Arthur as the sole heir.
• The handwritten will was not signed by any witnesses.
• The will’s handwriting did not match William Stout’s canceled checks.
• The bucket and footprints were examined using William’s shoes and comparisons to Deputy Cox’s tracks.
• The footprints were not as deep in the soil as those of Deputy Cox, leading to the conclusion that someone closer to the sheriff’s weight made the prints.
• The article referenced adultery and an illicit relationship between Arthur and Inez Palmer.
• The article referenced uncertainty and multiple views about Sarah Stout’s motive for turning in her stepson.
• Quotes attributed in the court reporting included Judge Darby’s statement about mercy and escape from the electric chair, and that Inez Palmer would have no hope of pardon or parole.
• The article included a headline and subheading reporting that Inez Palmer pleaded guilty on first degree murder and received life term “With No Hope of Pardon,” while also reporting Arthur Stout’s conviction on a second degree indictment with hope of pardon or parole.