The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1901-05-03
A COURT ROOM STARTLED
DISTRICT ATTORNEY SAYS HARD
THINGS.
Charges Sodergren Decision to Have
Been a Travesty on Justice-Scene in
United States Court.

A most sensational scene was enacted
| In Judge Estee's court this morning.
The twelve jurors who heard and de-
cided the Sodergren case yesterday were
Charged in open court with making
, mockery of justice by their verdict, and
the whole panel was discharged. One
Of .the jurors thus arraigned asked per-
mission TO reply to the statements
made by United States Attorney Baird
in denunciation of them, but was re-
fused the opportunity by Judge Es-
tee
The circumstances of the incident
We're these: Captain Sodergren of the
bark Hesper was tried a day or two
ago on a charge of beating a seaman
on the high seas, and was found guilty
and sentenced to six months imprison-
ment. Yesterday he was tried on an
other charge of beating and assaulting
the cabin boy Edward Hanlin.
The names of the jurors were: j. II.
Stelfng. w. F. Sharratt, st. 9. b. Say
res, Charles H. Carter, E. 9. Rowe, E.
| q. Winston, q. q. Traphagen, W. L.
Eaton, J. X. Marsberg, Il. X. Adams, A.
b. Scrimgeour and Edgar Henriques.
Yesterday afternoon a verdict of not
guilty was rendered. This morning at
the opening of court the names of the
| entire Venire were called, and all were
! present. Judge Estee was then about
to proceed with the trial of the next
, case on the calendar, that of william
! Walsh charged with assault and bat
| teryfon the high seas on the same Ves-
| q In at
point United States Attorney Baird
arose and made his objection to the
jury and the verdict it had brought in
He declared that he could not get JUS
tice from such jurors, and as discharo-
! ing this twelve would leave the panel
less than twelve he asked that the en-
tire Yenire be discharged. Judge Es-
tee at first declined to discharge the
ventre, but afterwards consented to do
so, and entered an order to that effect.
E. X. Adams one of the twelve who
brought in the verdict to which Baird
objected asked leave to make a state
ment in reply, but Judge Estee declined
to allow it. w. A. Kinney who defend
ed Sodergren also asked leave to make
statement but was also refused.
The Jurors thus grilled are vegy in
! dignsnt, They say Mr.. Baird, had no
right to say there was no evidence war
ranting an acquittal as he was not in
the court room during the whole of the
trial and did not hear all the evidence.
At least three or four of the jurors
which rendered this verdict were on the
jury which tried the case in which
Sodergren was convicted.
Baird's unqualified statement was a
STARTER to all present. He talked for
about ten minutes and without going
into the evidence in the case declared
that the verdict of the jury had not
been in accordance with the facts made
apparent by the evidence. He charg-
ed that the jury had acquitted Captain
SOdergren although all the evil
dence went to show that he was as
guilty as man possibly could be.
There was no defense that rebutted a
single charge. 1t was a case of traves-
ty on justice and an outrage. There
was no use in bringing the Walsh case
| before the jury, for when ii would ac-
quit man on the evidence in the
Sodergren case it would acquit in the
Walsh case.
Baird said that ii was waste of time
and of the money of the United States
to continue to try cases with such a
jury as the one before him. AS there
seemed no chance of getting justice he
considered that he would be derelict i'm
his duty to the United States if he went
on with other cases. He remarked that
he had no criticism to offer for the re-
fusal to grant a continuance, but that
he did not feel 1t any use to go on and
would therefore enter a nolle prosequi
Bairds startling statement created a
profound sensation among the court
officers and lookers-o on and it was heard
with INDIGNATION by the astonished
jurors, who had come expecting to try
more cases.
Judge Estee, refusing to allow Adams
to make an explanation discharged the
whole jury and the incident ended.
The Judge upheld District Attorney
Baird in his stand against the jury
agreeing with him as to the Sodergrer
verdict. Estee was quite willin- to
speak as strongly as Baird had spoken
II do not consider that Baird said toe
much" said the judge. "The evidence
showed that a boy had been beaten
inhumanly six times. There We're OF
8 witnesses to this effect and no eVi.
dence controverting their statements
The case was so clear that any boy
could have decided It,"
Judge Estee had no hesitancy in eX
pressing the opinion that the mar
whom a jury declared not guilty haC
, been guilty. In reply TO a query as t.
his own opinion he said Captain So
dergren is guilty, of course"
: The twenty four jurors left the court
! room after being discharged, twelve o.
| them full of Indignation at the grillinl
they had received. and Baird will prob
ably hear from some of them.
Baird evidently realized that he haC
made a statement that would raise {
) row, for he gave orders to the steno
| grapher that no copy of his remarks
/ must be given out until he had had {
chance to correct the copy The resul
was that newspapermen were not abl
today TO secure the official verbatim re
port of the attorneys remarks.
Captain SOdergren. of the bark He's
per, was found not guilty by the Fed
G eral trial jury yesterday afternoon o
the charge of assault and battery OF
the boy Edward Hanlin. There wer
: six counts in the charge and the Yerdic
7 covers all.
I Captain Sodergren is already unde
sentence of imprisonment for si
months on account of assaulting sal
I lor.