Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1886-09-23
JUDGE zUeIA's DECISION.
why the Mclean Jurfst Held Cutting
as Guilty OF n Crime

CITY OF MEXICO, Aug. 13.-The Diario, the
official government organ, to-day contains i'm
portant documents regarding the Cutting case,
including the full text Of the decision of
Judge Zubia at Paso Del Morte, which show
clearly and unmlstakab,y that the court held
Cutting for crime begun on Mexican soil,
and continued simultaneously in Texas and
Mexico. This puts new phase on the case,
as 1t shows Judge Zubia regarded the case as
one continuous act In passing sentence on
Cutting, the Judge said the basis Of the criml-
nal proceeding against the defendant was the
first proof before him that he had committed
an offense classed as crime by the law, the
evidence OF which was Afforded beyond DIS
pute, by a publication which app AIRED In NJ
Ctntiaelid. on June @ last, paper published on
Mexican soil; secondly, that although 1t was
true there was an act Of Cancellation which
would have satisfied the offended party had 1t
been complied with, II was also true this act
OF Cancellation was not fulfilled and, there
fore, the crime still stood; third,
proof OF lack OF compliance with the
aim OF Cancellation Is found In a communica-
ton printed by Cutting In the FL Paso Sunday
Herald in which he renewed his defamatory
charges against Medina, and at the same time
published an article In III CeHtneia on Mexl-
can soil, In which be suppressed the capital
letters aud put the name OF Medina in
microscopic type In order To make its reading
flicult; fourth, the renewal Of the charges
did not constitute new offense but was con-
firmatioR Of previous charges; fifth this being
so the criminal responsibility of Cutting arose
from the publication In III CsntinelLa, which
Was renewed 10 Texas paper, his renewal or
ratification not constituting new crime
which should be punished with different
penalty than that which corresponded TO the
first publication.
The Judge further says: seven supposing,
without conceding It, that the crime OF de-
famatiou had been committed In Texas, the
fact that Cutting had in Paso del Norte copies
OF the FL Paso Sunday Herald OF which
Medina complained and which were by order
of the court seized, On the premises Of Cut
ting on Mexican soil, constitutes properly a
contamination OF the crime according to the
penal code"
Judge Zubia lays special emphasis on the
fact that Cutting actually circulated on Mex
lean soil his renewal OF the libel published in
Texas, aud declares that were the case revers-
ed be would be punishable under the present
code In Texas.
A. p. Cushing, an American lawyer, sums
up Zubia's decision thus: Cutting was con-
yicted OF repetition Of the libel first pub
lished In Mexico ard reprinted more virulent.
" In Texas, wnich he then brought over and
distributed in Mexico and II was the distribu-
tion in Mexico Of the second libel and not the
printing Of the same In Texas for which he
was convicted, the libel having been read by
three or more persons, as required by the
statutes Of the state Of chihuahua. Cutting
pleaded In bar TO the Jurisdiction Of the Next
can court that the paper had been printed In
Texas He did not however, deny that the
paper had been circulated on the Mexican
side, which was ? fact, numerous copies hay-
log been seized there by order of the court.
This aspect OF the case takes away the phase
OF a conflict Of law Of the two countries. The
publication OF n fun text Of Judge Zubas'
decision is regarded here as putting the case
out Of international controversy.