American Seaman Guilty of Stabbing Death

An American seaman who got into a fight with another man in Scotland Road was found guilty of manslaughter.

In the early hours of Sunday 24th January 1915 Charles Ziegler, a muleteer aboard the American steamer Kalvinia, was in Scotland Road when he began larking about with a small group of girls. Unbeknown to him one of their boyfriends, a carter named Edward Chandler, was walking just behind.

A fight ensued and during which Chandler suffered a stab wound to his abdomen and collapsed instantly. Ziegler was arrested and the injured man taken in a cab to the Northern Hospital. He was in a serious state and a deposition was taken prior to his death on the Sunday evening.

22 year old American Ziegler appeared at the police court on 26th January where he was remanded in custody pending the outcome of the inquest. This found that Chandler's death was as a result of wilful murder by Ziegler, leading to his committal to the Manchester Assizes. 

Ziegler's trial took place on 19th February. Under cross examination Dr House admitted Ziegler had injuries which could have been caused in a street fight. The defence counsel said the prosecution case was riddled with inconsistencies and called for a manslaughter verdict. The jury accepted this argument and Ziegler was jailed for eighteen months with hard labour.