The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-01-25
GRIFFIN is ACQUITTED
A Jury Finds Him Not Guilty of
Gambling.
OFFERED NO TESTIMONY
The Defense Contented Itself With Max
ing An Argument to Jury-Nearly
Seven Hours of Deliberation.
The Evidence in Brief.

Griffin. Griffin is one of the men who
was arrested in a raid made by the
sheriff's officers on an alleged gambling
game in the basement of the Reception
saloon, on Main street, on the night of
Sept. 10 last
A curious feature of yesterdays trial
is the fact that the defense did not in
troduce any evidence to offset the case
made out by the state. Attorney w. B.
Rodgers, who represented Griffin, con-
tented himself with an argument TO the
jury. Mr.. Rodgers made an eloquent
appeal and it apparently bore weight
with the jury.
There are two more men charged
with the same offense-J. Nj. Shannon
and j. S. Weatherill Weatherill was
to have been tried in conjunction with
Griffin. but yesterday morning 1t was
requested that the cases be tried sep
arately and it was 50 ordered. The
court room was crowded all day as the
case attracted more than usual atten-
ton. When court convened yesterday
morning the selection of a jury was
taken UP, and no difficulty was expert
enced in finding II men. The state was
represented by County Attorney Trip
pet and the defense by w. b. Rodgers.
The jury was secured after about an
hour of examination. The members
composing it are j. M. Shoup. Z. A.
aSITiS SleueEHdStIy k1ttNG Iioi-
vath, Joseph DeLodge. Pat Walsh. VIII
liam Foreman. John Barkovich, Charles
Hilbert, b. +. Crosswhite. Hamilton
Boutwell, and Joseph Sladich. After the
jury had been sworn the county attor-
ney made a short opening speech of
what the state expected to prove.
Joe DAILY. undersheriff of Deer Lodge
county. was the first witness. He testi-
fled that on the night of Sept. 10, about
il o'clock, himself, j. ]. McGinness,
Charles Gallagher, j. NJ. Pickell, c. h.
Hardenbrook. deputy sheriff's, and j. P.
or Mont" Gilbert. a special officer for
the occasion, went to raid a reported
gambling game in the basement of the
Reception saloon on Main street. He
thought that Ed Johnson was the pro-
prietor of the Reception at that time.
They went in at the back door of the
saloon, and went west into the saloon
about twenty feet, when they turned TO
the right and descended stairway
leading to the cellar below There was
door at the bottom of the stairway,
and the witness said he threw himself
against this door and broke the catch.
He thought it was a cast iron catch.
There was a wicket in the door near the
top. The wicket was about an inch or
an inch and a half in diameter and had
a cover which worked on a nail, pivot
like. DAILY said that when they had
gone down four or five steps the men
in the saloon above began stamping
and making all sorts of noise. This was
objected to by Mr.. Rodgers and it was
not admitted.
When he went through the door he
saw faro table, cards and chips. He
also saw that the defendant, Griffin,
was in the dealers chair that j. n.
Shannon was i'm the lookout chair and
John S. Weatherill was behind the door.
He described the layout in detail. There
a3saf.. In ig,y tlaf
pictures of cards, ranging from the ace
to the king. There was faro box and
pack of cards. Some of the cards were
in the box and some were on the table.
When he entered Griffin and Shannon
jumped up and put all the cards back
into the box. The box was introduced
as evidence and identified as the one he
had taken from the room.
Ten or twelve people We're in the room.
Some were standing up and some were
sitting at the table. He gathered up the
chips on the table. A man named c. X.
Bishop had some chips in front of him.
DAILY took them from him and Bishop
said that those chips represented his
hard earned money, and that he would
not give them up. Bishop had said that
the chips called for 1925, when Griffin
sprang up and said there We're only "a
chips in the pile and they We're worth
% cents piece, or $3.50. Besides the
had taken $261 from the till at the right
hand side of the dealer. He saw in the
place Fred Howard, James Howell.
John Corbett, Ed Otto and some other
persons whom he did not know
Cross examined by Mr.. Rodgers the
witness said that in going up town to
make the raid two of the officers had
gone up Commercial avenue and the
others had gone up through the alley
between Commercial and Park avenues.
The two parties met at Oak street and
joined forces. DAILY went into the room
first. He burst the door open by means
of throwing his weight against 1t. When
he went in all the people scattered. He
did not see any faro game in progress
himself. There was no play after he en-
tered. He took his revolver from his
pocket when he got into the room.
J. j. McGinness, deputy sheriff, was
the next witness. He had been one of
the party of officers that made the raid.
He told about breaking in the door and
other things that DAILY had testified to.
There We're seven or eight men sitting
around the table when he saw them.
On cross-examination he said he had
followed DAILY down the stairs and the
two had hit the door together. He saw
the men about the table, sitting down.
Fred ]. Howard was material wit
ness for the state. He was in the Re-
ception cellar when the raid was made.
Several men We're playing a game with
chips and cards. He understood that 1t
was called faro bank He got some
checks from the dealer two or three
times. and paid money for them. He
did not know just how much he had
paid. He placed the checks upon the
pictures on the layout. He lost money
at the game, he thought. He had been
in the room about Is or 20 minutes be-
fore DAILY and the officers came in. Mr..
Trippet gave him the faro box and re-
puested him to deal out the cards as the
dealer had done. Howard was evident
ly not an expert faro dealer. for h deal.
the cards out the wrong way. He did
not know how long the game had been
running. When h. went down stairs no
one had said anything to him.
on oss-examinati6n Mr. Rodgers
asked him as ta his testimony in the
preliminary examination. The attorney
asked him If a that time he had moi
answered in the negative to the question