On Appeal: Sacco and Vanzetti

Evidence Concerning the Guilt of Bartolomeo Vanzetti

TYPE OF EVIDENCE

PROSECUTION'S EVIDENCE

DEFENSE RESPONSE

NOTES

Eyewitness Identification

Four witnesses (Faulkner, Dolbeare, Levangie, and Reed) placed Vanzetti near the crime scene.  Faulkner said he saw Vanzetti get off a train at East Braintree at ten o'clock. Dolbeare claimed to have seen him in the back of a car near South Braintree Square  between ten and twelve. Levangie claimed to have seen him driving a car near the South Braintree station soon after he heard shots fired. Reed, a gate-tender, testified that he saw Vanzetti get out of the passenger-side of the front seat of a car at a crossing near Bridgewater around 4:15.

No one claimed to have seen Vanzetti during the actual shooting. A defense witness testifed that Levangie said a few minutes after the shooting that it would be hard to identify the man he had seen driving the car. Another witness testified that Levangie told him that he saw no one, while a third witness said Levangie initially said the driver was light-haired (Vanzetti is dark-haired).  Vanzetti testified that he was selling fish in Plymouth (25 miles from Braintree) at the time of the crime. Six witnesses testify that they saw Vanzetti in Plymouth near the time of the crime.

Evidence Concerning Vanzetti's Gun Vanzetti's gun

The gun found on Vanzetti at the time of his arrest (a 38 calibre Harrington & Richardson revolver)  resembled one that paymaster guard Berardelli was thought to be carrying at the time he was shot. Vanzetti's gun had a repaired hammer, and there was evidence presented that Berardelli's revolver also had a repaired hammer.  At the time of his arrest, Vanzetti said he bought the gun at a store (but could not remember which one) and he lied about how much he paid for the gun and where the bullets came from.

Vanzetti testified that he bought the gun from a friend (Falzini) a few months before his arrest.  He said he bought it because he received cash from his fish peddling business and was concerned about recent hold-ups. Falzini testified that he sold the gun to Vanzetti.

Actions and Falsehoods Suggesting Consciousness of Guilt

Vanzetti lied about his guns, the whereabouts of his friends, and his reason for being in Bridgewater on May 5 [see also Sacco evidence above]. Vanzetti's explanation for being in Bridgewater at the  time of his arrest was weak.  Vanzetti probably went to Bridgewater to get Boda's car (the Overland) to commit another robbery.

Vanzetti testified that he told some lies when initially questioned because the country was in the grip of the Red Scare, and he feared for his own safety and that of his anarchist comrades.  Vanzetti stuck with his original story about why he was in Bridgewater: he  testified that he had gone there to collect anarchist literature, but could not name the names or addresses of people or places he would be collecting the literature from.