Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-10-20
THE COURT RECORD IN
THE MOODY MURDER TRIAL
"a CHAPTER FROM THE HISTORY OF THE
REIGN OF THE fiICHWAYMEN I'M
BUTTE IN THE WINTER
OF 1862

Every enc In Butte remembers the
killing of Paul l.. w. Kroeger by two
highwaymen on West Park street in
May, 1897. 1t was. the elimination of a
series of bold hold-ups.
Frank Moody, charged jointly with
THOMAS. Franey Tor the killing of
'Kroeger, had been turned loose that
same afternoon from the county Jail,
where he had been held for sometime
as a. member of the Clancy gang. He
made a demand on the county attorney
for some money, and being refused,
made the threat that he would get some
money before morning. The next morn
ing he was arrested by the police for
the murder of Kroeger. The case
against him was one of the strongest
eases of circumstantial evidence ever
presented in Montana. Eight OF the
5ury in this case We're in favor of a YER
dict of murder in the first degree.
Moody was a member of the .cele-
brated Clancy rang Of hold-ups, which
.terrorized Butte to such an extent in
the winter of 1886 and 1897 hat the
militia were called out and p%aradeds the
streets of Butte for several nights, as
sisting the police in stopping every
suspicious pedestrian after 9 O'Clock at
night. Moody was arrested with the
Clancy gang in a cabin in the eastern
part of town, but" the crime for which
Clancy and the others were convicted
could. not. be proved against Moody. >
Moody is now serving d f1fteenlyear
sentence in San Quentin. .About+a year
; agoehe attempted to bold up a citizen of
San Francisco-a at midnight, and just as
ifin the -Kroeger, case, his request not be-
ing instantly complied with, Moody shot
his man through the neck. A mounted
IN Y,Oliooyeo q :. han ri n tho chnt oovo ohouo
{ and captured Moody.
. His photograph was sent to Butte for
: Identification, and positively identified
by all the city and county officials here.
After the discharge of Moody the state
contemplated an appeal to the supreme
court, and being, it is alleged, unable to
procure q transcript of the proceedings
Lin the case from the court stenographer,
'smade an application to the supreme
court of Montana for a writ of mandate
requiring the said court s~tenographer
stto furnish the county attorney of Silver
i.Bow county with such transcript, and in
support of the said application filed in
1.-THE supreme court of Montana the
affidavit of Guy W.. Stapleton, county
attorney of Silver Bow county Montana,
(which is as follows:
EN- THE SUPREME COURT OF THE
STlAIlE OF MONTANA. =!
THE STATE OF MONTANA, ex rel.
, Guy w. @Staioleton, County Attorney in
ANIL fer Silver Bow County, Montana,
: Re.ator, VS.. WILLIAM w. WILSON,
+ ~Stenographer eft the Second Judicial Dis
| tr;ct Court CT Montana, Respondent.
State CT MONTANA, County Of Sill
yer Bow: SIS.
Guy w. Star.eton, being first duly
tqswer1, on oaah detoeses and says: That
he is the duty elected, qualified and act
ing Cou..t.y Attorney IN and for Silver
I!BCv County, Montana; that as such he
/ has had d@ailye, and STILL has charge, of
the prosecution oe the case of the Stats
of Montana against Frank Moody,
3 charged with the crime CT murder, in
E5aiIillg one Paul F. w. kroelger en-. the
u :nislI II of the 2s.Il day cie May, 1897, which
8 said cause was tried in department No. 2
of the District Court OF The Sacond Ju-
: ficial District OF nhe State of Montana,