Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1902-06-16
SALT LAKE CITY JUNE ie, 1902
THE VERDICT.

The verdict In the Mortensen case
given by the carefully selected jury, Is
that Of the general public Any other
result would have been a surprise TO
the great majority Of the people VINO
have followed the investigation with
intense interest since the day the body
of the unfortunate victim OF assassin
alton was found IN the shallow grave
IN the field. How any other conclusion
could have been arrived at, In view oil
the evidence presented on one hand'
and the absence OF evidence on the
other Is impossible TO conceive All
the facts testified to. pointed in the one
direction.
The attorneys on both sides are en-
titled TO credit, for the manner IN
which they conducted the case. The
prosecuting attorney did his full duty
ana did Il well. His clear, irresistible
logic was particularly in evidence In
the final argument In which he unfold
ed, link by link, the chain that con-
nected the accused with the most helm
, Gus crime in the annals Of Utah, The
defenders also fought brayely They
did all In their power TO save from ig-
nominIous death the man who had
placed hls desperate case into their
hands, but they were from the first
fighting the inevitable.
Much has been said about the admis-
sion Of revelation" as evidence. we
do not believe the Jury was influenced
by any such evidence One OF the wit
nesses on being pressed for an explana-
tion--and that by the defense-as to
how he knew that the accused was the
murderer OF his son-ln-law, stated that
God revealed Il to him. Another man,
under similar circumstances and with
a similar experience, might have said;i
II felt IT, or ut came to me intuitive-
IT," There is nothing very uncommon In
such experiences, and X Is not strange
that devout worshiper should feel
convinced that his intuition his con-
vlctlon tno matter what name IT IL
called by was caused by divine infu-
ence. TO him It was a revelation
But there IL no reason 10 believe that
the jury took notice OF II as evidence.
There is eminent legal authority for
the statement taat II would have been
an error for the court to order that
part OF The testimony stricken out II
was brought out by the defense on
eross-exaninatlon and no motion was
made to have It stricken out How
could the court order il expunged when
there was no motion made to that eff
ifect2
But the Judge. In his charge, told the
Jurors that they were the sole judges
of the credibillty of the witnesses Of
the weight and effect OF the evidence,
and of the differences to be drawn there
from. He charged them that they had
the right to consider the state OF mind
OF any witness at the time of the oc-
currence of the things about which he
has testified. IN so far as the evidence
enables them TO Judge Il; and the prob
ability or improbability Of the truth OF
their statements, in view OF all the 9TH
err evidence. II the jury followed these
instructions, they were not influenced
by anything but legal evidence.
Mortensen has been tried and found
guilty. The penalty fot the crime OF
which he stands convicted, is death.
Regret. and even sorrow. may be felt,
that man with the opportunities
Mortensen has had Of leading use
full life and entering into a glorious
eternity, should throw away his
chances in this manner; but the deep
felt sympathy win be bestowed, not
upon him. but upon the wife aud little
ones. whose earthly support was cut
of In youth by the hand OF a murderer
and for those innocent ones. upon
whom the murderer has brought des-
pair and disgrace. II is well that
crime should be punished according 10
law. as speedily as possible. II is only
to be regretted that too many murder
ers Of both sexes, are permitted to es-
cape the penalty. TO propagate the
species and perhaps their charaoterls-
tics. II is this uncertainty In the adj
ministration OF justice that renders the
death penalty, when applied. less ef-
fectiye than It would be, We're human
laws executed as surely and impartial
ly as are the laws OF nature.