Contra Costa County CA Archives History - Books .....Murder Of Dr. John Marsh 1882
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Book Title: History Of Contra Costa County, California

   MURDER OF DR. JOHN MARSH.—Perhaps no more horrible crime than the murder of
this pioneer can be found on the pages of any history, and certainly no better
example of justice following the guilty than which tracked one of the murderers
to punishment eleven years after the commission of his foul deed.

   Dr. Marsh had been for many years—long before the American occupation of
California—the owner of the Los Meganos Rancho, of which he became possessed, as
we have elsewhere stated, by purchase in the year 1837. Here he dwelt,
surrounded by his people, flocks and herds, for full two decades. On or about
the twenty-fourth day of September, 1856, business called him from his farm to
Martinez, some thirty miles distant. In the grey dawn of the following morning
his horse and buggy were found in the town of Martinez, but without an occupant.
Then followed the search, which led to the discovery of his body in a road-side
ditch, immediately upon which the pursuit of the murderers was undertaken. On
the day following Jose Antonio Olivas was captured; after making confession as
to certain money found in his possession, taken from the body of the murdered
victim, and implicating Felipe Moreno as principal in the deed, he was tried and
convicted, but escaping from jail, he eluded justice for more than ten years. In
September, 1866, he was re-captured in Santa Barbara county, and brought to
Contra Costa to await his trial.

   About the same time Felipe Moreno was taken in Sacramento, where he was going
under the alias of Don Castro. When arrested he made a desperate effort to
escape, but being mastered was quickly handcuffed and incarcerated.

   The third party implicated in the terrible murder, Juan Garcia, has, up to
the present time, eluded justice.

   The trial of Felipe Moreno for the murder of Dr. John Marsh was commenced on
Saturday, September 23, 1867, and on the following Thursday the jury brought in
a verdict of murder in the second degree against the prisoner.

   The principal and only positive witness for the prosecution on this trial was
Jose Antonio Olivas, one of the three persons indicted for the murder. Separate
trials for the prisoners had been procured by District-Attorney Mills, with the
purpose of using the testimony of Olivas for the State, and corroborating it, as
to material points, by that of unimpeachable and disinterested witnesses. The
defense relied mainly upon being able to prove an alibi; but notwithstanding the
very able efforts of M. S. Chase, of Martinez, the counsel for the prisoner, the
testimony failed to convince the jury, as the verdict shows, although it was not
as severe as might have been expected, and this possibly because of the youth of
the prisoner at the time, and the doubt remaining as to whether he may have been
a chief or an auxiliary actor in the perpetration of the murder.

   The story of the Doctor's death, as told by Olivas, is as follows:

   On the morning of September 24, 1856, the date of the murder, Jose Antonio
Olivas and Felipe Moreno, aged twenty-five and nineteen years respectively, in
company with some females, came into the village of Martinez, where, having
attended church, they proceeded to Pinole, returning from thence between four
and five o'clock that same evening. They almost immediately continued their
journey to Pacheco alone, and when reaching the hill about a mile from Martinez
paused awhile to await the arrival of Juan Garcia, who was expected to meet
them. Olivas then went on ahead for about two hundred yards, when he was
overtaken by his comrades, and the three urged their horses into a gallop. While
so proceeding they met a man named Swanson. Not long after this circumstance
Doctor Marsh was observed to be coming in his buggy. Hereupon he was accosted by
Olivas, who asked him for certain money due to him for services as a vaquero, to
which the Doctor replied that he would be paid on his return from San Francisco,
but that he had no money with him then. The deceased now drove away, while the
party remained behind and concocted a scheme to kill him, but finally arranged
that he should only be robbed. They then followed in pursuit, and on overtaking
their victim, Olivas, by Moreno's orders, seized the Doctor's horse by the head,
while Moreno jumped into the buggy and Garcia stood guard alongside. The
deceased at once faced his enemy and said: "Do you want to kill me?" to which he
received the reply "No" from Olivas, and "Yes" from Moreno, and notwithstanding
the dissuasions of his companions, this youthful fiend slashed the unfortunate
man in the face with a knife. He was then draped out of the vehicle and fell to
the ground, being before, however, wounded in the hand; Olivas having then
dismounted, as he says, for the purpose of assisting the Doctor, who came
towards and struck at him, a scuffle ensued, Olivas crying to Moreno to free
him. Thereupon Moreno observed: "why should I let go this old cabron" and
forthwith stabbed his prostrate victim in the left side. Upon receiving this
wound the Doctor cried aloud, when Moreno was prepared to repeat the operation,
but was pushed away by Olivas, who parried a cut made at him. The Doctor now
attempted to rise, but was only able to stagger a short distance and fell into a
ditch-dead. His pockets were then rifled by Garcia find Moreno, who afterwards
cut his throat, the deed being witnessed by Olivas from his saddle. This
terrible crime being perpetrated, the triumvirate repaired to the top of a
convenient hill and there divided the booty, whence they repaired to some houses
for the night and afterwards fled, and for ten years and upwards escaped the
iron hand of the law.

   Moreno was sentenced to imprisonment for life in the State Prison on Friday,
November 29, 1867.


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:

HISTORY OF CONTRA COSTA COUNTY,
CALIFORNIA,
INCLUDING ITS GEOGRAPHY, GEOLOGY, TOPOGRAPHY, CLIMATOGRAPHY AND DESCRIPTION;
TOGETHER WITH A RECORD OF THE MEXICAN GRANTS; THE BEAR FLAG WAR; THE MOUNT
DIABLO COAL FIELDS; THE EARLY HISTORY AND SETTLEMENT, COMPILED FROM THE MOST
AUTHENTIC SOURCES; THE NAMES OF ORIGINAL SPANISH AND MEXICAN PIONEERS; FULL
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY OF THE COUNTY; SEPARATE HISTORY OF EACH TOWNSHIP, SHOWING
THE ADVANCE IN POPULATION AND AGRICULTURE;
ALSO,
Incidents of Pioneer Life; and Biographical Sketches
OF EARLY AND PROMINENT SETTLERS AND REPRESENTATIVE MEN;
AMD OF ITS TOWNS, VILLAGES, CHURCHES, SECRET SOCIETIES, ETC.
ILLUSTRATED.
SAN FRANCISCO: W. A. SLOCUM & CO., PUBLISHERS
1882.


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