The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-10-23
CHIEF JUSTICE FREAR
DECIDES IN CASE
OF WRIGHT
MATTER COMES UP ON HABEAs
CORPUS AND THE WRIT IS
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES NARROWLY
ESCAPED A RAISE.

b. H. Wrights application to Chief
Justice Frear for a reduction of bail
came to nothing this morning. In fact
the defendant appeared to have mar
row escape from having his bail raised
to $25, ,000 instead of reduced from &c.
900, for the Chief Justice quoted a Sec
tion of the law under which he might
have made such a raise. Frear also
called attention to the fact that the
bail fixed by Wilcox of $4,000 for an
embezzlement of nearly $5,OOO was
proportionately less than that fixed by
Gear when a reduction was asked in
the previous case, of $4,000 bail for So
200 alleged to have been embezzled.
The effort to get b. H. Wright out on
bail was renewed this. morning before
Chief Justice Frear of the Supreme
court. The defendant appeared in the
chief Justices chambers at ten o'clock,
in response to a writ of habeas corpus
issued last night, charging that $4,000
required was excessive bail. He was
accompanied by the High Sheriff and
Attorney General Dole, who made the
following return to the writ of habeas
corpus, in behalf of Brown.
THAT he is the duly appointed, quail
flied and acting High Sheriff of the said
Territory and eX-OfIicio keeper of Oahu
Jail; that he holds and detains the said
BENJAMIN H. Wright in said bail under
and by virtue of a commitment of the
District Magistrate of the District of
Honolulu for the crime of embezzle-
ment alleged to have been committed
by the said Benjamin H. Wright; and
under and by virtue of a mittimus
thereon, "a true copy of which is an
nexed to said petitioners petition and
made a part thereof; that the amount
of the alleged embezzlement is $4,9S2.10
and that the amount of bail fixed and
required by said District Magistrate is
$4,000, that the amount of said bail is
not excessive and that the same has not
been rendered"
George r. Davis entered into a long
harangue on behalf of the defendant. He
roasted Judge Wilcox and police magis-
trates generally, and declared that the
government was not giving Wright a
square deal. "They want victim ,
roared the attorney, "and they are af-
ter one. But they can't take this man
who may be innocent and lock him up
and prevent him from getting out to
get fair trial" Davis added that the
days of the "thumbscrew and boot had
passed, and talked in thunderous tones
of the attorney generals violation of
the constitutional rights and the fun
damental principles of Anglo-SaXon
liberty" in trying to keep Wright in
custody. Reference was made to
Judge Gears reduction of bail from Sc
900 to $4,000 in the former case, in
which the amount said to have been
embezzled was $4,000.
That is a larger sum for the offense
than $4,000 in this case isn't it?" asked
Frear.
Davis admitted that Gear had gone
higher than Wilcox but said that Gear
had gone too high as well as Wilcox.
There is an attempt on the part of
the government" continued Davis, ito
prevent this man from getting bail.
He has already given large bail, and
was at once arrested on a new charge.
1t looks to me as if the government
wanted to find victim. But your hon
or will decide according to the prin-
ciples of broad, even-handed justice,
continued the lawyer and then with a
glare at Dole he declared that the gov
ernment was trying to place obstacles
in the way of giving Wright fair
trial.
After ALL embezzlement is not such
a serious crime" said the lawyer. 1T
is bad enough, and we all want to pre-
vent it, but when we get one embez-
zler out of many, let us not seek vic
tim unfairly, and deny him the right
to bail which is guaranteed to every
man accused of crime"
Davis had a supreme contempt fol-
district magistrates. He declared that
they were not lawyers. "They make
many mistakes" he declared. 1--WE al
CONTINUED on page hTe.)