The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1902-09-15
B. H, WRIGHT'S BAIL
REDUCED To
$4,000
ON HABEAs CORPUS JUDGE GEAR
HOLDS THAT $4,000 Is EXCESSIVE.
SOME OF THE AUTHORITIES
CITED BY BOTH SIDES.

Judge Gear this morning reduced the
bail required of b. II. Wright, charged
with embezzlement, from $4,000 as fixed
by Judge Wilcox, to $4,000. The reduc-
tion was made on an application for ha-
beas corpus, the petition for which was
filled Saturday and the writ made re-
turnable this morning.
George A. Davis and c. w. Ashford
appeared for Wright. The petition for
habeas corpus set forth the charge
against Wright, the process under
which he was held in custody, and the
amount of bail as fixed by the police
court This bail, the petition alleged
was excessive, in that it was more
than the defendant could reasonably be
expected to give, and was therefore a
practical denial of bail in an offense
clearly bailable.
In presenting the matter to the court
this morning, George A. Davis cited the
United States VS.. Browner, 7th Federal
Reporter, pages SO, 81 and So, ITO re-
quire larger bail than the prisoner
could give would be to require excess
sive bail and to deny bail in a case
clearly bailable by law"
The syllabus of this case he cited as
follows:
'To require for the accused a larger
sum as bail than from his circum-
stances he can be reasonably expected
to give, is substantially denial of bail,
and a violation of the constitutional
guaranty against excessive ball.
Davis also cited the Hawaiian statute
on the subject of bail, section $50 of the
Penal laws:
Section $50. The amount of bail rests
in the discretion of the Justice or Judge
but should be so determined as not TO
suffer the wealthy to escape by the pay
ment of pecuniary penalty, nor to rem
der the privilege useless to the poor. In
all cases, the officer letting to bail
should consider the punishment to be
inflicted on conviction, and the pecu-
mary circumstances of the party ac-
Cused.
Deputy Attorney General Cathcart
for the government argued that Sc, 900
bail was not excessive where the
amount of 'embezzlement charged was
as large as in this case, and the defen-
dant on conviction could be fined FIVE
times the amount of the embezzlement
aside from Imprisonment.
Judge Gear said that in the case of
Woodward and Thompson, a case sim
liar to this where the defendants had
five indictments against them each
charging an embezzlement of SIS, he
had fixed the bail at $500. But in each
of those cases the term of Imprisonment
that might be imposed was the same
as in this. In other words the statute
made the embezzlement of one dollar by
government employe the same crime
that the embezzlement of thousands
would be except as to the amount of the
fine to be imposed. He did not see
exactly on what theory the statute was
framed, but if he had been right in
fixing the bail in the Woodward and
Thompson cases, $4,000 was excessive in
this case. ThereupOn he called the de-
fendant Wright to the stand.
What bail can you give in this
case?' asked Judge Gear of Wright
Il don't know exactly haven't been
out yet to see any of my friends"
Then you don't know but you could
secure the bail fixed?"
No l don't think l can get that
amount"
Mr.. Davis, what efforts have been
made to secure bail?"
we spent all day Saturday trying
to get bail and failed" replied Attorney
George A. Davis.
Concluding this interrogation, Judge
Gear said he would fix the bail at 81, 600.
Wright and his attorneys express the
belief that they can secure that amount
of bail. The surety is to be approved
by the High Sheriff.