The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-01-10
LAVELLE MUST SERVE.
He WIFI Remain i'm Prison-LaycOck
Case In the Supreme Court.

Case In the supreme Court.
The Supreme Court yesterday affirmed
the decision OF the Pike Circuit Court in
the case of the State VS.. James C. Lavelle,
ex-auditor of Daviess county, now serv-
ing ans eight year sentence at Jefferson
vile for burning the Daviess county court
house. The appeal TO the Supreme Court
for arrest of judgment in this case was
made on the ground that tho indictment
was defective in that it charged that
Lavelle set fire not to the courthouse, but
to large parts of it." The Supreme Court
decision holds that the mere statement of
the appealing counsers contention is it's
own sufficient refutation setting fire to
a part of a thing is certainly setting fire
to the thing itself. Further along Chief
Justice Howard, who wrote the de-
csion, remarks that the count of the in
dictment referred to may not be artistical-
ly drawn, but it is a plain charge of
crime. In the opinion of the court the in
dlctment is good even on a motion to
dd diet. anu Is certainly sO0d ai'ef the YER
The court also affirmed the decision of
the Marion Criminal Court in the case of
the State VS.. James II. Laycock, convicted
Hoosier Lodge, No. Isl brotherhood of
Railroad Trainmen, while secretary of
that lodge, and now serving two years
point by Laycock's counsel was that the
lower court erred its instructions TO the
Jury in the relations of the prisoner to the
association. LaycOck was, so his attorneys
urge as much interested in the lodge as
any member therein, and his crime there
fore was not embeZzlement The Supreme
Court holds that the act of embezzement
may be perpetrated well against the
property of an association as of a corpora
ton; that the lodge was Laycock's en-
ployer within the meaning of the statute,
and that the funds in question were the
subject of embeZZlement by him. Justice
DALEY wrote the opinion.
In the case of the State against Charles
Fleming convicted in the Madison Circuit
Court of grand larceny and sentenced to
one year in the penitentiary, the Supreme
Court reversed the lower courts work on
the ground OF refusal TO instruct the
Jurors that If Fleming was shown by the
evidence to have been with a young lady
during the most of the evening on which
the theft was committed, and such evil
dence raised a reasonable doubt in their
minds as TO his guilt, they should not con-
Wet him This instruction was not errone
Gus and the refusal to give il was, in the
courts opinion, an error ana a,r9, sufncient TO
lower court. The crime. charged is the
stealing of So and a railroad ticket from
Anderson to Chicago and return OF the
value or $40.
PostofIice Burglar Pleads Guilty.
Some days ago man giving his name
as James Dickson was arrested and turned
over TO the federal authorities upon sus-
picion of being the individual who robbed
the Claremont postoffice of n small amount
OF money and stamps-all the pcstofice
had however. He has persistently refused
since then TO admit anything and has been
communicative and unsociable ali around
The government authorities hustled about
and secured quite an array Of witnesses