Maj. Wilson escorted the three men to Brandenburg, where they boarded a steamer for Louisville. Military authorities kept Clarke's trial a secret, and the verdict had been decided the day before the trial. He pleaded to be treated as a prisoner of war but was tried as a guerrilla. On March 14, military authorities planned Clarke's execution, even though the trial had not started. At the brief hearing Clarke was said to have "stood firm and spoke with perfect composure." Clarke stated that he was a regular Confederate soldier and that the crimes he was being charged with he had not committed, or they had been committed by Quantrill. During the three-hour trial Clarke was not allowed counsel or witnesses for his defense. Three days after his capture Union authorities scheduled Clarke for public hanging just west of the corner of 18th and Broadway in Louisville.