Arizona republican., 1903-10-29
THE TRInBLE OUTRAGE CASE
Extraordinary Manner in Which the
Mother Was Turned Loose.

Judge Baker returned yesterday
morning from Solomonvlle where he
went to apply for change of venue In
the case of Mrs. Bette Trimble TO be
retired for assisting in a criminal as
saut upon eleven-year- Lydia
Sparks, the daughter of the defendant
Tie hearing of the motion for the
change of venue was brought to an end
by one of the most extraordinary pro-
ceedlnss that ever happened in a court
room. Judge Baker was never more
thoroughly surprised in his life. His
surprise was shared in an equal meas
ure by the court and all the attending
attorneys.
This case has been partially describ-
ed by The Republican and by the local
! papers of Graham county. 1t will be
necessary to go over it in part again
to tell what happened at Solomonvine
on Tuesday.
Walter Trimble and his wife had for
some time been living at Stafford. There
lived with them the girl Lydia Sparks
the daughter Of Mrs. Trimble by a
former marriage. The Trimbles NOV
ed to New Mexico and before the end
OF the year they returned to Stafford.
They remained there a short time and
then went to Cananea.
Before their departure for Cananea
The little girl tcld some one in the
neighborhood of the crime which her
step-father had committed against her
year before and she said that her
mother had assisted him. When the
story came to the ear Of the authorities
warrants We're issued for the arrest of
the Trimbles and they were brought
blck 10 Graham county. They knew
only in general way why they had
been arrested until their daughter went
on the stand and told the horrible
story 1t took three grand juries to in
Glct both of them and two trial juries |
To convlce them, Trimble Of rape and
his wife of being an accessory. There
is by the way in all the books a single !
record of the conviction of a woman for
such a crime.
Both cases were appealed and in the
case Of Trimble the judgment of the
lower court was affirmed but in the |
case of Mrs. Trimble il was reversed
not because she was woman or be- |
cause the evidence against her was not
as strong as that against her husband. |
for both he'd been convicted on precise |
ly the same. the statement of the lit |
tie girl.
But in the case of Mrs Trimble a |
blunder had been made She had been
charged as an accessory whereas the |
statutes Of this territory recognize no |
such participant in the crime of rape. !
The criminal must be a principal or |
nothing. If Mrs. Trimble had assisted |
in the outrage her position was pre-
cisely the same as that Of her husband. |
SO a new trial was ordered
In the meantime Mrs. Hayes. of Orc. |
so. Cal, n sister Of Trimble a cultured |
woman of good family had heard of |
the trouble of her brother and came |
on to help him. He had. however, been /
sent to the penitentiary. She began 4
gathering evidence in his favor in var
lous parts of the country. Pima county, |
elsewhere in Arizona. New Mexico. /
Texas end Nevada. 1t was shown that /
the little girl had told a variety Of con-
Trajectory stories. She had for in
stance told that she had never seen her
own father and it was shown that she
had lived with him for four months
within the last two years. So much
testimony tending to show her I'M
worthy of belief had been gathered
TINT there seemed no doubt of the ac-
quittal of her mother at the second
trial and that evidence would be
brought out to establish the innocence
of Trimble
Mrs Hayes had employed Judge
Raker TO defend Mrs. Trimble. He
learned of the feeling which still existed
in Graham county against the Trim
hles md he went to Solomonville armed
with twenty-five or thirty affidavits in
support of u motion for a change o.
venue. II was shown by the atfidavits
that three grand juries and two trial |,
juries he'd passed upon the cases; that
they had been discussed by the press
and that a feeling existed which made
a fair and impartial trial in that coun-
ty impossible.
District Attorney RaWli of Graham