The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-04-23
HOT SHOT FROM YARIAN.
The District Attorney Gives the
Governor Broadside.
SCORCHING ARRANGEMENT.
The Governor Asked Why He Has Freed
Notorious Murderers and Thieves.
The Peoples Side of the Subject Pre-
sented in the Form of an Open Letter
List of Offenders Liberated With
out Investigation

An open letter to Arthur L. Thomas, governor;
SIR-On Dec. II, 1891, Malachi Dillon
was sentenced to term of nine years
imprisonment upon conviction OF volun-
tary manslaughter. Upon appeal the
judgment was affirmed. Dillon had shot
and killed an unoffending man because
he declined to take drink. The defense
at the trial was insanity. and the ques-
ton was fully and ably presented by pro-
fessional experts and counsel of distinc-
ton. In letter of date Jan. 20, 1893,
you wrote my assistant, Mr.. Allison, as
follows:
s'If you desire to make q personal
Statement in the matter of the application
for pardon for Malachi Dillon you can
fix the time and l will hold myself in
readiness to hear you. I do not think
there is any necessity for you to do so, as
have no intention now of granting the
pardon. If l should decide to do so,
which is not probable, will give you
ample notice.
You pardoned Dillon without notice and
without hearing the peoples side OF the
case. In an interview which appeared IN
THE HERALD last Saturday, l criticised
your action in this and other cases, as /
had perfect right to do. spoke of your
official acts. In the Sunday edition of the
paper which has wet-nursed you through
your political babyhood, you resort to
personality, and naturally avail yourself
of the arguments you are best acquainted
with.
1t would be interesting If time per-
mitted, to analyze your character, and to
study your intellectual development.
At some future time, when opportunity
serves, it may be my privilege and
pleasure to present you to the public, as
you are; to exhibit as it were, your astral
body in all its completeness.
But let US resume the discussion of
pardons granted by you. The record
shows that you have pardoned from the
penitentiary since July 4, 1889, eighty
five convicts, who had been convicted of
murder ,manslaughter, assault to murder,
assault to do bodily harm, robbery, rape,
burglary, forgery, embezzlement, house
breaking, grand larceny, riot, arson and
crime against nature. goodly list,
showing an average of about Cor nearly
two a month.
Most of these men were pardoned by
you without hearing, or even giving no
tice to the prosecuting officers. Because
of some fancied slight, or possibly the in
ability of the district attorney to appre
ciate your full blown greatness, you cut
off all personal and official communIca-
ton with his office. In this you perhaps
have gratifed your undisciplined inclina-
tons, but you also have certainly done
much injury to the public service.
Permit me to direct your attention to a
few of the cases where you have opened
the Jail doors, and to ask you why you
did these things? VAST at the behest of
those who guide and control most of your
actions, that you were prevented from
hearing both sides?
April L, 1890, you pardoned over the OBJ
| jections of this office, 3. A. Ellington,
who had been convicted and sentenced to
term of three years on March 20, 1889,
for robbing the Nephi bank. What did
you know about this case, anyhow?
| On November 81, 1891, you pardoned
! Ernest Green, who had been sentenced on
i March 8, 1890, for a term of one year upon
each of eight different indictments for
grand larceny. Green was member of
the gang known as the Carter gang of
horsethieves, which was run down by
Sheriff Burt with much patience, labor
and expense. What did you know about
Green, anyhow? If you had inquired of
this Office you would have ascertained
that Green never supported his family,
but, on the contrary, was supported by
them when he was out of the pen. For
tunately for the public, in short time
Green was gathered in for stealing
another horse. and is now serving five
years. sentence.
Oct. 15. 1891, you pardoned j. w.
Chadwick, sentenced at Beaver six
months before to two years imprison-
ment for grand larceny.
| In February of this year you pardoned
John Chew, sentenced IN October 1891, to
three years for grand larceny. My assist
ant informs me that Chew was one of the
most notorious horse and cattle thieves in
Sanpete county. What information had
| you about it, and why did you not en-
deavor to ascertain the facts?
In July of last year you pardoned
j. w. Killeen, convicted of en-
bezzlement and sentenced to three
years in November of the preceding
year. K1lleen was the chief clerk in the
railroad Office at Provo, and managed
to steal 500 or $500 by Juggling his books.
And let me call your attention to the
case of Willard Pherson, which. is not
included in the penitentiary pardons.
Pherson was convicted at Provo
for selling liquor to a minor Pherson
employed a boy about his place and paid
him in whisky, thereby keeping him gen.
orally intoxicated. The father of the boy
forbade the giving or selling of liquor to
the boy, but Pherson continued. The
offense was aggravated, and because OF
its grave character the judge added to the
fine, Imprisonment in the county Jail for
| three months. At the request of his at
torney, the execution of the sentence was
suspended ten days to enable Pherson to
prepare for his Imprisonment. In the
meantime you pardoned him. What for?
Whitlock and Harris were convicted
December 9, 1890, of stealing whole herd
of sheep, over 200. You pardoned them
in the following April. What for?
James Griffin was convicted of volun-
tary manslaughter at Ogden after long
and desperate struggle. On the 9th of
June, 1891, he was sentenced to four years
imprisonment. The case was appealed to
the supreme court, and on the 21st of
November of the same year, and before
the hearing IN that court, you pardoned
fendant's counsel made an ex parte ar
gument before you upon the evidence
taken at the trial If this is so, why did
VOL, ,c.t ali in the other slda2 Cal,