The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-06-13

IS IN OVER HIS HEAD
COUNTY ATTORNEY ANDERsON's
RECORD CAUSING A GOOD
DEAL OFF CRITICISM.
CANNOT DRAW INDICTMENTS.
WHEN ONE DOES SEEM TO HOLD
WATER HE CANNOT CON-
VICT.
HIS WEAKNESS COMMON TALK.
Six Months of What Is Regarded as
Stupid Numbering ON His Part
Afraid of Butler.
CANNOT DRAW INDICTMENTS.
HIS WEAKNESS COMMON TALK.


marked a court house habitue yester-
day. Without undue eXaggeration,"
continued the gentleman, ut may be
said there is vacancy in that office"
This may be exaggerated but it eX-
presses the popular sentiment Of the
city. Following out the foregoing idea,
the records Of the last election show
that a majority Of the voters of Ram
sey county elected Samuel A. Ander-
son to succeed Pierce Butler as county
attorney. The records also show that
Mr.. Anderson was duly installed in
that office. But the criminal court rec
ord doesn't show up as it formerly did;
where there were convictions, there are
now nolles.
1t is common talk around the courts
and around the streets that there is
something rotten in Denmark" and
people are beginning to inquire into
the cause. What is the matter with
Anderson" is a question upon the lips
of those who don't know. Those who
think they know answer the question
in one word-incompetency.
If the efficiency of a county attorney
were measured by the number of in
dictments returned within given time,
Mr.. Anderson's official career would
indeed be a brilliant one. Indictments
under Mr. Anderson's administration
have been as plentiful as strawberries.
William F. Bickel has been especially
favored, and William Dawson Jr is a
close second. But these indictments
don't stick, or, if perchance they do
hold water long enough to go to trial,
he f1-io 70 0P ,;o1, = I,o
petit jury is merely a collection Of
spectators.
The weakness of the county attor-
ney is especially conspicuous when peo-
pie recall the administration Of this Of
flee by Mr. Anderson's predecessors,
Pierce Butler, T. D. O'Brien, c. D.
O'Brien, j. j. Egan and others.
The members of the bar began to dis
cuss confidentially with each other Mr..
Anderson's incapacity as soon as he
entered upon the trials Of petty Grim
inaf cases last January. 1t remained
for the public to recognize the kind of
officer it had chosen when he took hold
Of the bank cases.
Samuel A Anderson is comparative
ly young man. Prior to his election
to the office which has swamped him,
law, his experience however, being
chiefly confined to civil cases. He
might not therefore have been expect
ed to be versed in the technicalities of
criminal law and practice. He has
since demonstrated to the people who
have read about his methods of pro-
ceeding, that he is not only woefully
deficient in the technicalities of the
practice, but the voters who have con-
stituted themselves his critics, think he
is disqualified to present criminal cases
to grand jury, let alone petit juries,
which many of his cases never reach.
He lacks tact in conducting a trial
and loses his temper under the badinage
OF opposing counsel. JurieS are but
human, and sometimes get even with
the counsel when they return their YER
dict
Mr.. Anderson record thus far in
prosecuting the bankers, the people are
in a general way conversant with They
know that he hasn't secured anything
approaching a conviction. They know
that five or six indictments found by
the grand jury on evidence submitted
by Mr.. Anderson, have been quashed.
They know that Mr.. Anderson is afraid
to go to trial on the only Indictment
now standing against William f.
Bickel, namely, the so-called Lucius in
dictment. And knowing these things,
they are betting. if they bet. at all,
that not a single conviction will ever
be had in the bank cases. The peo-
pie are satisfied that Mr.. Anderson is
in over his head.
When bank matters were at fever
heat Mr. Anderson started in to Sc
cure indictments. He was in a hurry
and became more hustered as he pro-
ceeded. First he submitted evidence of
a. false entry in the books of the sank
of Minnesota and of a false report to
the bank examiner. Two indictments
against William Dawson Jr. resulted
But Mr.. Anderson doesn't want to go
to trial on these indictments. He pre-
fers the subsequent ones.
Then the grand jury which returned
these indictments declined to indict
any more bankers on the evidence ad-
| duced by Mr.. Anderson, whereupon
grand jury. And when that body in
formed the court that it had no more
work to do, the young county attorney
so far forgot the dignity Of his office
as to publicly declare, II am glad to
be rid of that grand juryv'
Mere lack of experience was hardly
sufficient to account for such a
break
An instance of the county attorneys
i'll considered action is afforded in the
| drawing of the Indictment charging
! William e. Bickel, of the Minnesota
! :
200 odd dollars from Hulda Peterson,
one of the depositors of the bank On
the trial it was conclusively shown that
! II any larceny had been committed the
! money had been stolen from the Min
nesota Savings bank and not from Miss
Peterson. On this showing the case
! was necessarily dismissed But aside
from this mistake, had the Indictment
lntead charged Mr.. Bickel with steal
ing the money from the bank, it is
conceded that such charge could not
have been proved.
Again, in the trial Of Congressman
Stevens, the county attorney mani
| tested his unfamiliarity with criminal
practice, and ignorance in such cases.
1t was sorry spectacle he presented.
Vainly endeavoring for almost an en-
! tire day to prove by secondary evil
| dence that Mr.. Stevens was an Officer
OF the Minnesota Savings bank I'm
able TO proceed any further, Mr.. An
| dersOn wanted to nol1e the case at this
| advanced stage, when the defendant
rather than be discharged under n.
nolle, instructed his attorney to admit
what the county attorney was SEEM
ingly unable to prove.
Mr.. Anderson's record in handling
the Jail cases has been far from bril-
liant. The only important case In
which a conviction has been secured
was that of F. r. Rose, the advertis-
| ing swindler, who was found guilty of
! forgery and was sent to the state pris-
! on for ten years. And this case was
solely in charge of Assistant County
| Attorney Zolman who secured all the
evidence and tried the case.
Some amateur burglars, scarcely out
| OF their teens, were convicted on the
states evidence of their pals or on
/ of .1,;Io