Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1902-12-20
JET NAY S ACQUITTED. D.
Jury in the May Case Brings in q
Verdict Of Acquittai at Eleven
O'clock Last Night.
Defendant Discharged from Custody
and Last Act in the Trial
is Over.
Jury was About Two Hours in Reach
ing Verdict After Case was
Submitted to Them.

ing a Verdict After Case was
Submitted to Them.
jeff May was last night acquitted OF
the charge of murder of Harry Hibbs
on the fifteenth OF january last. The
verdict Of acquittal was reAched at
shortly after II o'clock and at half past
IL the defendant in the case, whose;
trial has occupied three weeks, was
free man, after eleven month of wait
ing, seven months OF which were passed
in jain. The jury at "a little after IL
O'Clock sent a bailiff to notify the court
that they had reached a verdict. Clerk
Shelton and the other court officials
were notified and preparations were
made to receive the verdict. The
short length of time which elapsed from
the tiune the jury retired until the ver-
dict was reached indicated that the
verdict was one of acquittal
When the verdict was received
there were in the court room the de-
fendant and this attorneys, Messrs. Reg
lister and Nye, the count officers, and
perhaps thirty or forty spectators who
had learned THAT a verdict was to he:
brought in. AS the jury filed in, they
were eagerly watched by those in the.
Court room, as though their faces
mig ight give an intimation of their ver-.
dict The suspense was not foa. long.
The roll of the jury was called. Judge
Winchester then asked Foreman Geo.
w. Bradford if the jury had agreed
upon a verdict We have, . said the
1 foreman, and in response to "a question
as to what the verdict was; the fore
I man answered Not guilty Z Is The
members OF the jury assented in the
verdict The members Of the jury
were then thanked by the court for
their patience attention to the case,
and were discharged. The defendant
was also then fo1nlally discharged from
custody The entire proceedings oc-5
cupied only q. short time.
The ending of the case was reached
8 at the evening session of court. States
Attorney Allen occupied about an hour
at the might session, in closing the
case. He went carefully over the evil
dence, pointing out the circumstances
upon which the state relied to prove
the guilt OF the defendant. He fol-
4 lowed the argument OF the attorneys
for the defense. stating to the jury the
1 facts (which were inconsistent with the
8 Innocence of the defendant He asked
4 the jury to see Justice done to the dead
Harry Hibbs who had met his death
on that morning by what the state be-
lieved to have been ttle fenonious act
of JEFF May. He analyzed the sug-
gestions which had been made BY coun-
56sel foa' the defense as TO how Hibbs
might have fallen, and as to the injury
TO the skull showing why the state
believed them impossible. He COM
pared the testimony of the witnesses,
asking the jury to weigh that OF the
states witnesses against that of those
for the defense. Mr.. Allen made a
clear and logical present ntation Of the
4 states side OF the case.
Judge Winchester charged the jury
d clearly and dispassion ately as no the
& law In the case. He explained what
the state must prove Ito establish the
case What WAS reasonable doubt,
and the law covering the features Of
the case. His charge occupied about
half an, hour, and instructed the jury
clearly as to the law in the case. The
jury retired at about 8 O'clock to con-
i slider the case s5 ,3
Nh. Nye finished his argument of the
B case at shortly before 5 O'Clock in the
afternoon. He talked I'M all two hours
and three quarters. Comple letting the
thread nf his argument he said that
he would assume that Hibbs got ait the
y well under his nervous excitement, and
! got 1lp: The Well is open. The de-
tense did not know where he stood
The pulley was swinging instrument
8 No rule would tell how a man might
fall. AS he loosened the pulley, al
ndications were that he fell to the
east on south. How he fell was con.
lecture at the very best. He Nigh,
fall I'M a hundred ways. It was moi
Impossible that he shipped feet down