The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1889-08-06
THE AUSTIN CASE.
The Action ofthc lOridian AuthOri.
ties Defended.

ties Defended.
Nothing Was Done In q Corner-The Governor
and Others Fully justified in Doing What They
Did-A Few Salient Points from Austins Attor-
ney.
Editor Morning News: Having read in the
columns OfyOur paper of July 81 an account of
the action of some of the citizens of Palatka,
and said to be Endorsed by the people of Put
nam county, Florida. wherein resolutions were
passed denouncing the action of the governor,
the judges of the supreme court and the attor-
ney general of the State of Florida for commu-
ting the death sentence of James Austin to
imprisonment for life feel it duty to myself
and to all those connected with said action 10
make an explanation: 1t is required by the
laws of Florida in proceeding asking for COM
mutation Ofsentence to have a notice of the
same posted up in three different places Zone on
the court house door, or published in q news
paper of general circulation within the county
where the crime was committed and the trial
had. ten days prior to the presentation of appli-
cation for pardon or Communication such notice
to set forth the crime when and where commit
ted, the court and the term thereof where tried,
the verdict and sentence and the purpose of the
application.
On the 18th day Of July 1889, such notice was
given in both OF the above named ways, within
the county of Putnam, thirteen DAYS prior to the
July, 1889, was in Palatka all day getting a
copy of indictment, testimony, and all other
papers necessary to complete the application
and was free to make known the object of my
visit to all with whom l had business.
found the Sheriff and his deputies, the Clerk
of the Circuit Court and his assistants, gentle
men in the true sense of the woodland very
obliging when l asked them for information or
assistance in preparing the application Also,
+. +. Haskell, an able lawyer of Palatka, and
one of the attorneys who defended James Aus
tin on his trial, aided me all he could, and took
great pains to see by the assistance OF the Clerk
that all papers furnished me were exact copies
of those had in said trial. The testimony given
before the court and jury in the trial of James
AUSTIN and furnished me by the Clerk, was the
exact testimony, verbatim, taken by the stenog-
rapher in said trial, duly certified to by the
Clerk, examined by Mr.. Haskell, and pro-
nounced by him and the clerk to be all the testi-
mony given on said trial-no more, no less l
then proceeded to Tallahassee, and reached that
city about o'clock p M, July Is. AT o'clock
p. m. OF the same day the Governor called
together the Board of Pardons and COM
mutations, which consists of the Governor,
Judges of Supreme Court and Attorney Genera
OF the State OF Florida l presented my app-
cation. The testimony was all read before the
Board by E. j. TRAY, Private Secretary of the
Governor. With few brief remarks submit
mitted the application. No testimony was given
to the Board except that given on the trial of
James Austin and certified to by the Clerk of
the Circuit Court of Putnam county. The Board
considered the application for about an hour and
then adjourned to July 20, at 10 o'clock A. NJ,
and thereupon resumed consideration of the
same, and In the evening of the same day, by
their decision, committed the death sentence of
John Austin to imprisonment for life.
Nothing was done in the above proceedings in
a corner or clandestinely, but openly and fairly !;
n ma of fhn
sulled reputation of Hon. Frank P Fleming,
Governor, and the honorable Judges of the Su-
preme Bench and Attorney General of the State
of Florida, is unbecomng the citizens of Palatka
and Putnam county, to say the least of it, for the
testimony adduced in the trial of James Austin,
and presented before said Board, did not, and
could not justify verdict Of murder, punishable
with death. The men composing said Board
are notable for being men who seek to know the
right, and knowing the right, dare to do the right.
regardless of what men may think, say or do
WILLIAM PEACE,
Attorney at Law.
SAVANNAH, Aug. 1, 1889.
The above statement of the case is SO
fair and complete that very little room is
LETT for comment.
The record Of the case-including the
dying declaration of Mr.. Loring, the tes-
timony, verdict of the jury, sc, was GER
tilted by the Circuit Clerk of Putnam
county to the Pardoning Board, consist
ing Of the Governor, Supreme Court
Judges and Attorney General. That was
all they had to 60 upon-that was all the
law required. Counsel, after making a
brief statement, submitted the case on it's
merits, and retired from the Board. The
record was read and discussed on one
day, and the Board adjourned until the
next day, when the testimony was re-
read and, finding that the evidence
did not, in their opinion, make out a
case of murder in the first degree, it was
the plain duty of the Board to commute
the sentence to imprisonment for life.