The record-union., 1896-06-28
HAR7'S VIGOROUS PROTEST..
he Wanted Carroll Tried Before Callen-
dine.
Charged Conspiracy to Cloud the Purity
of His Principal Witness
Character.

When the cases Of Callendine and
Barney Carroll came up for setting for
trial by Judge Hinkson, A. L. Hart,
counsel for the former, was represented
by his brother, r. S. Hart.
The Callendine case was set for the
Goth of July and Carroll's for the Doth
This did not suit A. L. Hart at all, and
later he appeared before the court and
asked to have the dates reversed.
He claimed that to try Callendine
while his most important witness was un-
der indictment for felony was an injus-
tice to him. He charged that there was a
conspiracy among the detectives to
throw suspicion upon Carroll and i'm
peach his testimony by charging him
with crime.
Assistant District Attorney Jones said
the prosecution was not bound to wait
till the trial in order to impeach him.
Mr.. Hart said the District Attorney
had no right to try the case in this
manner. Carroll should be declared
guilty or innocent before he was put
on the stand to testify in the Callendine
case. He would come on the stand dis
credited in advance with such charge
against him through the conspiracy of
the detectives
Assistant District Attorney Jones said
that Mr.. Hart's argument showed the
weakness of his case, when he admit
ted that the defense would fall on ac-
count of the Indictment of Carroll. The
argument that Carrolls evidence in fa-
vor of Callendine would be invalidated
Of ho OF CT
him would apply with equal force to
Baker, who also testified in his favor
Judge Hinkson said that when r. s.
Hart spoke against the setting of the
two cases in their present order he ut
tered what sounded like a threat in case
the Callendine trial was set for the
earlier date, that continuance would
be asked for. 1t sounded like intimi-
dation Of the court, and he would like
to hear why it was said.
General Hart said that he should GER
tainly in that case make an affidavit for
continuance. If the principal wit
ness for the defense was under a cloud
it was not just to place him on the wit
ness stand until after he had been
shown either to be a pure man or else
had been convicted, which would i'm
peach him. He charged that there was
conspiracy of the detectives to dis
credit Carroll
The court asked r. S. Hart why he had
! used the language he did and he stated
that he did SO because his brother, A.
l.. Hart, had stated that if the two
trials were set in the present order he
should make an affidavit for a continu-
ance.
The court said that one of the prin-
cipal reasons why he set the cases as he
did was that r. S. Hart had intimated
that If the cases were not set to suit him
they would present an affidavit for a
continuance. 1t sounded to him like a
threat, and he did not like it. General
Hart had. however. explained that his
| brother had simply alluded to what he
himself had told him, and that the affi-
davit proposed to be presented was a
proper one. It became, therefore,
simply a question of whether the pres
ent order of the trials would work an
| injustice and he would like the District
Attorney to present his side of the case.
| Mr.. Jones said General Hart had
charged a, conspiracy of the detectives,
| the District Attorney and the Grand
| existence in fact, and was false. There
was no way for the fact of CarrOlls in
dictment TO be brought before the jury
| in the Callendne case unless Mr.. Hart
| took occasion to speak of it himself, in
order to abuse the District Attorney and
Detective Fisher, and declare that they
! were railroading his witnesses to Jail
| in order to impeach them. =.
| The court said that he did not be-
| lieve Mr.. Hart would so far forget him.
self as to abuse the District Attorney.
and he would give him notice now that
| If he attempted in his argument to ring
| in any portion of this matter that he
| was not authorized to he would hold him
| to strict account for it as fragrant vio-
| lation of right. He understood Mr.. Hart
now to say that if Carroll was con-
victed that would be an impeachment
of his evidence and that what he OBJ
| jected to was that he should be put upon
| the stand with the matter undetermined.
| He (the court) now felt that if the
| affidavit was made that it would not be
what he had at first understood it to be
| and that it would be proper Under the
! circumstances he would change the
| order and set the Carroll case first
| r. S. Hart asked to have the dates of
| the cases reversed, but Mr.. Jones OBJ
| jected. as Callendine's had been already
set. and the court therefore set the 10th
| of July for Carrolls trial