Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1886-02-12
BEFORE THE DISTRICT COURT.
hall and Jones Convicted Of u. q.
To-day, and Policeman smith
on tho way.


When the Third District Court con-
vened this morning the front seats were
filed with the families OF Thomas Jones,
John p. Ball and Policeman John Y.
Smith, the three cases which the court
calendar indicated would come Up for
trial to-day. The attorneys in each case
for the defense were Ben Sheeks and lie
Grand Young, and to the good sense and
judgment of these gentlemen was largely
due the remarkable dispatch with which
the cases were disposed Of. They waived
all challenge or examination of jurors,
and themselves suggested the calling OF
only odd numbers, SO that no time be UNI
necessarily wasted.
The three cases were all for unlawful
cohabitation, and that OF John =. Ball, Of
the Third ward, was first called. 1t was
somewhat of a surprise when the clerk
was instructed to call the witnesses, rs it
that Mr.. Ball would adopt the popular
method of confessing. Isabel Ball, a
daughter of the defendant, was the first
witness, but was only able to tell the
court her name and place of residence,
when she melted i'm tears and was ex-
cused.
John p. Ball, the defendant, took the
stand. He testified: The two ladies
named are my wives and were such dur
ing the period covered in the Indictment.
They resided at that time in my house in
this city, in different apartments, and
lived with them as husband, alternating
in my visits. Excused.
All further evidence was waived, and
without argument or remark the case
was submitted to the jury and verdict
of guilty rendered at once. Saturday the
2lst inst. was designated as the date for
passing sentence.
The next case was that OF Thomas c..
Jones. The clerk again called only odd
numbers of jurors, and the twelve gem
tleman thus summoned were passed and
sworn without single Interrogation.
Mr.. Jones took the witness chair ut his
own solicitation, and testified as follows
am the defendant in this case and am
acquainted with Eliza lesson Jones and
Mary Argyle Jones, mentioned in the in
dictment. They are my wives, and /
lived with them in the capacity OF hus.
band during the period charged. We re-
sided together in this city. Excused.
The same results followed as in the
preceding case, and the jury was again
discharged, and the 9th inst. set for sem
tence.
When the case OF Policeman John Y.
Smith was called, the defendant mani
tested no disposition to let his own testi-
mony convict him, and the court was
Obliged to get in shape for an actual trial,
much to the delight Of some of the
audience, who had begun to regard the
confession process as decidedly monot-
onous. Counsel for the defense an
nounced that in this case they would ask
to have even as well as odd numbers
called, and the clerk acted accordingly.
The first twelve gentlemen all went down
on account OF their belief i'm polygamy,
and the remaining one, Mr.. Dunyon, be-
cause OF bias. This gentleman was sub
jected to close and searching examina-
ton, in which he insisted that he chad
been raised here, had sympathy for the
people here" and that il would require
more evidence in this class of cases than
in any other TO cause him to convict.
He was peremptorily challenged and ex-
cused. In the second batch called six
went down, five on account OF their faith,
and one, w. H.. Remington, as result
OF impressions already formed. Before
proceeding further Mr.. Dickson asked for
fifteen minutes recess, in order that some
witnesses could be summoned.
The examination of witnesses in the
case OF John Y. Smith began this after
noon, shortly after o'clock. There had
been some difficulty in obtaining attend
ance OF several witnesses, and for this
reason the case was continued from
this mornings session. There never
has been case in this court perhaps,
where the witnesses were so unitedly set
against furnishing evidence, and it was
pitiable to see the manner in which sew
eral OF them perjured themselves. John
Y. Smith, Jr., Policeman George Hilton,
James Hilton, Martha Smith, the
defendants daughter, and S. II.
Lewis all testified, the latter in
relation to the evidence given
before the Grand Jury in the case last
fall. 1t was Officer Hilton, brother OF
the defendants second wife, who carried
off the London bun for positive fibbing.
Mr.. Dickson worked with him for long
while, and exhausted every ingenious
means at his command to get the witness
to acknowledge n fact in the case,
but all to no purpose, the model police
man did not even know whether his sew
eral little nieces had father or not. He
certainly had no impression as to who
their male parent was, he insisted, and
manifested n similar degree of pretended
Ignorance throughout the entire exami-
nation.
Annie Hilton, the polygamous wife,
had skipped quite recently, and OF course
none OF the witnesses, had any idea as to
her whereabouts. When Mr.. S. III. Lewis
was put on the witness stand the attor-
neys for the defense objected to his tes-
timony on the ground that all information
obtained in the jury room was of secret
character, and could not be brought out
in court. This point was being argued
when the DEMOCRAT went to press.