The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1904-10-08
ANOTHER COUNTY
JURY FLUKE.
-uNIY CASE TRIED RESULTED IN
AcQuITTkL.
YOUNG HERE nGnHER 75TH
y Republican Campaign WiItbs Opened an
Iron County by Our Congressman
Other Speakers Coming.

Iron county juYars have BECOME the
ljaughing stock of the upper peninsula
: and the jury on the case tried at the
term OF the circuit court this week
kept up the reputation, lOngestablish-
ed, by acquitting the prisoner, al
though, on the first ballot ,it Is said,
lthe jury stood seven for conviction
and five for acqnittal
The case was that OF the people VS..
..Ioha Bell, charged with larceny from
the person. The Testimony showed
that a sum Of money, somewhere
about, eight dollars was taken from
one Wp. Anderson and Bell was
charged with having taken IL.
When, the case was called the ,prAson-
,er pleaded not guilty but had no at
torney to defend him SO the court ap-
pointed VI. III. Moriarty 10 look after
his interests. There was some parley-
ing between the attorneys - TO the
qnestion,G putting the case over but
they 6nallydisagreed and the case was
set for Monday p. m.
The complaining witness charged
Bell with having taken eight silver
dollars from him. His story IL that
Bell took him TO his (Bell's) room.
That he had ni0e silver dollars la his
pocket and that. when they got into
the room, he gave Bell dollar To go
TO a saloon and buy some whiskey.
When Bell got back they drank the
whiskey. Bell went To bed and Ander-
son lay back across the bed with his
clothes ON. During the night he felt
someone feeling ip his pocket and,
turning over, asked Bell what he
eneant. Bell said he WAS just turning
oyer TO 90 TO sleep. When the wit
5leSs awoke the next morBjng he was
minus his money.
The defense introduced mythical
One-ssmed, wooden armed wooden
headed or some other kind Of man;
any kind sufiiced for the jury. Bell
says that the complainant put the
money Into bureau drawer iD the
room. That after the complainant
went to sleep, he tBelD went out OF
the room and met this one-armed man
who asked him for some wbiskey.
They went back 10 the room. drank
the whiSkey and. for the want Of an
occupation, the ODe-armed man began
to inspect the bureau and found the
money. He took IL and the two went
out and spent the money. The one
armed man skipped town" next
morning.
ON this improbable story twelve
good and intelligent men retired TO a
jury room and inside of thirty minutes
returned verdict OF mot guilty"
In conversation with the pr0secut-
ing attorney reporter for the Dia-
mond Drill commented upon the
laxity Of Iron county Jurors IN general
and the prosecutor said "AS far as
the question concerns that un-
fortunate fellow who was ON trial to-
day, have nothing 70 say Twelve
men says that he Is not guilty and
their verdict must be taken as final,
but | want to tell YOU and the people
OF Iron county that II these indiscri-
inmate acquttalS are continued by
Iron county juries. there viii occur 4
carnival Of crime la this county some
day that viii cause the people 10 le.
gret very much the course they are
now. pursuing Go over the whole
history oi this county from size oc-
ginning and the convictions in thc
Iron county circuit court can be
enumerated on the fingers OF your two
hands, Notwithstanding that numer-
ous cases have been tried and well
tried. Every man who has occupied
the prosecutors Office viii tell YOU The
same thing. Understand me, ! am
not anxious that every man put on
trlnl should be convicted: | would
rather dozen men were let go than
0ncfnnocent man punished but when
jurors are 50 gulligle as 10 swallow
intact the improbable stories That
are told them by the defendants and
friends interested In the cases and to
set aside al consideration Of the
prosecution, Iron county is inviting
crime and its people will some day
,.a.,t, ~, ~. xtfi, tptt,sf,A1 tho epndU that