On Aug. 13, 1936, sheriff’s deputies were called to the home of fellow officer John McNeill in Temecula. McNeill, a Temecula blacksmith and deputy constable, reported the beating of his wife, Melvey. A few minutes beforehand, his son, John Jr., had similarly called, reporting that he had found his mother severely beaten and unconscious. When help arrived, Melvey McNeill was rushed to the county hospital where she died that night.
During questioning, John McNeill Sr. had indicated that he had seen a “prowler” running from the house just before his call. However, that story began to unravel almost as quickly as other facts came in. John Jr. had told investigators that he had seen his parents quarreling often, mostly about money and ill treatment of some of the animals they kept.
The most damning evidence, though, came from Melvey McNeill herself. Despite being severely wounded, she managed to tell officials on three different occasions that her beating had been at the hands of her husband. She had indicated that the weapon had been a rubber-covered roller from a washing machine. Deputies quickly discovered the weapon, covered with blood and hidden in a box, and began grilling John Sr. further. His contention that a “prowler” had been in the area was quickly dismissed by neighbors, and soon the only “prowler” police were investigating was John Sr.
John McNeill was a blacksmith by trade, but already had a criminal record. He served two years in San Quentin for forgery. In addition, he was known for having a caustic temper and being argumentative with his wife. He later stated that he had hit her a few times in self-defense because Melvey had threatened him with a gun, which she was holding in her left hand. Forensics investigations quickly ruled that out as her left hand was badly deformed, and operating a pistol with that hand was out of the question.
After days of investigation, on Aug. 24, the grand jury recommended that John McNeill be held without bail for the slaying of his wife. McNeill immediately obtained a lawyer and began to “work the press,” as people would say today. A few articles appeared in the Riverside newspaper, The Press, during August, September and October indicating that he would plead justifiable homicide and/or insanity in the killing of his wife.
Jury selection began on Oct. 26, 1936, with District Attorney Earl Redwine facing off against John Neblett and Russell Waite. In what The Press described as a “meticulous selection of jurors,” each team dismissed many people before coming to an agreement on a nine-woman, three-man jury. At 11:15 p.m. on the night of Oct. 30, the jury released their verdict that John McNeill should be sent to the San Quentin gallows for the murder of his wife.
The verdict was automatically appealed to the state Supreme Court, which denied the appeal on April 27, 1937. With that, Riverside County Judge Oakley Morton sentenced McNeill to be hanged on July 9.
On July 9, McNeill “mounted the gallows nervously, but did not falter” according to The Press. He was pronounced dead at 10:16 a.m. Less than five years later, California would do away with hangings in capital cases in favor of the gas chamber.