Blackfoot news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1891-1902, 1895-08-10

nothing remained to be done but to re.
sentence the murderer and execute
him. But here a stubborn fight was
made on a technicality This was that
the certified copy Of the Judgment of
| the Appellate court had been RENTED 10
the clerk with whom the original judg-
ment is fled-that Is. to the Court of
| General observation-disclosures in two sec
tons Of the criminal law it was ordered
that In cases OF a resentence to death
the convict must be brought before the
| Court OF Appeals or a general term Of
the Court OF Oyer and Terminer. Two
other sections gave the authority to
the court pronouncing the original SEN
tence, but on this guibbls respite Of
a week was granted by the recorder to
enable him to determine his authority.
This respite was extended until March
| %, when the prisoner was arralgned
before Recorder Goff, who had in the
| meanwhile succeeded Recorder Smyth
! He again sentenced Buchanan to die
! during the week beginning with the ed
OF April
| This appeared to be the end of the
! case-so much so that Buchanan's
| counsel abandoned him On April g.
I
scene to continue the experiment Of see
ing how long the established law of
the state could be evaded. He laid out
a program Of great briliancy and com
| prehensiveness.
This program included an appeal to
the Supreme court Of the United
States on a writ Of error. an appeal to
the British ambassador 10 intercede or
the ground that Buchanan was Brit
ish subject, a personal intercession
with the governor Of the state for
respite, an attempt To secure from the
! jury petition for a Communication, and
the introduction Of new evidence TO
snow that the expert testimony as to
morphine poisoning was worthless
This new evidence was to the effect
that morphine reaction had been de-
| tected by the chemical analysis of the
remains Of RABBIT that had been buried
in Greenwood cemetery; il has thus far
cut no figure in the proceedings. The
jury met, but refused TO recommend
communication; the British ambassador
declined to interfere: the supreme
court on April II denied the applica-
ton for the writ Of error. One chance
Of delay remained-the governor Of the
state.
He was reached not through the law,
but through his personal feelings On
April 20 he answered the formal re-
quest for a respite with the official
statement that there did not appear TO
be any reason for granting the respite,
and the sentence of the court ought not
therefore to be disturbed. But the wife
OF the prisoner made a personal appeal
to him; she based her request on the
so fully on the proceedings to save him
that he had not had time TO prepare for
death. On this statement Gov. Morton,
on April %. granted respite from the
execution Of the sentence until the LIST
OF May, 1885,
Here was the opportunity Of the ener-
getic criminal lawyer. He immediate
~ raised the point that the respite
granted by the governor was valid in
postponing the date OF the execution,
but that 1t was not valid in namins
new date; that the prisoner must be re-
sentenced.
He alec appeared again before the
United States District court with the
grounds which had been rejected by the
New York Court Of Appeals and the Su-
preme court Of the United States He
appeared before Judge Brown Of the
District court with his application on
April 2e. The Endorsement of Judge
Brown on the application ran: Il find
In this petition no legal reason for sus-
tanning or further considering this APP
plication for a writ of habeas corpus"
In other words. the application was not
considered. There was no case. This.
however did not discourage the coun-
sci. The fact that he had no case in
. - -.
cepted by him as a basis for an appeal
to the Supreme court and for the posi-
tive assertion made in the forum of the
public press that his intention to APP
peal in case which did not exist op-
Grated as a stay of proceedings in
case which had been finally passed on
by the tribunal of last resort. This
oSinion should not have influenced any
one having any knowledge Of law. but
the attorney general of New York. be-
ing appealed to by the warden of the
state prison as to his proper course.
answered that under the circum-
stances he would advise that the safe
course was TO defer the execution until
the appeal claimed shall have been dis
posed Of or determined. This was on
the day before the date which had been
fixed for the execution. On May 1 the
governor granted another respite Of a
week. OF to May S. to allow the warden.
the Encouragement, the Court of APP
peals, the Court Of General Sessions.
and the district attorneys office TO un-
tangle themselves from the knot in
which he had tied them by his act OF
kindness. On the 7th OF May the dis
trict attorney telegraphed TO the gov
ernor to instruct the warden to proceed
with the execution. The governor re-
ferred the matter to the attorney-gen-
eral. The Encouragement again ad-
vised that, as a measure of additional
IL -