The Hawaiian gazette., 1904-10-07
WRIGHT GOES
TO PRISON
Supreme Court
UphoIds Trial
Court.
tFrom Wednesdays AdvertIser)

Y
b. II. Wright, former chief clerk in
the Public Works Department under
the regime OF Superintendent James
II. Boyd, convicted of ENLIGHTENMENT OF
public funds in the Circuit Court
year and half ago and sentenced to
Imprisonment for three years, had all
his hopes of liberty crushed yesterday
when the supreme Court filed
lengthy opinion in the case. sustain
ing the verdict of the trial court. All
of Wrights exceptions were overruled
and the case remanded to the Circuit
Court to have the sentence carried out.
The former public officer was imme-
.diately asrrested and will shortly at
once begin to serve out his term which
was imposed by Judge De Bolt.
The i. II. Wright case is the first
one of the public funds embezzl ement
matters in which the defendant has
finally been lodged in prison. James
H. Boyd escaped the penalty on ;cch-
nicalities and w. II. Wright the form
er treasurer, is now a fugitive of 1us-
tice. To j. w. Cathcart, former Dapu-
'ty Attorney General is largely due the
conviction of b. II. Wright, al 1t was
he who conducted the case in the trial
court.
The substance of the decision, when
is the unanimous opinion of the SUI
Epreme Court, is as follows:
THE defendant was appointed by
the Superintendent of Public Work as
chief clerk of the Department of Public
Works and clerk of the market, his
duties as such clerk being prescribed
by the Superintendent, amongst them
being the charge of public money re-
ceived az the department, the salary
for his Office being appropriated py the
legislature, but no statute specifically
authorized his appointment or placed
him in charge of public money: held
that the defendant was within the class
of persons designated in section 15S,
p. L.. viz: Whoever, being a collec-
tor, CO shier clerk or other person en-
ployed in the Government Treas
ury, or in any other department of The
Government, is guilty of embezzlement
of any money, note, or other effects
or property belonging to the Govern
lnent' issI
Defendants receipt of $3,2S953 as
chief clerk of the department of
Public Works, receipted for by him as
such clerk, his failure on demand to
account for the money, offer to give
his check for IT, asking that the matter
be kept quiet, his failure, when asked,
10 say what he had done with the
money and his concealment of it, not
making any deposit of it in the official
safe in the Office and failing to pay it
into the treasury, constitute in law
the offense of embezzlement as defined
in Sec. l57, p. L.
The foregoing acts and conduct of
the defendant are evidence of his
fraudulent conversion or disposition of
the money to his own use and benefit
or the use and benefit of another than
the owner or person entitled thereto
under Sec 157, P. L.
"A witness for the prosecution testi- |
fled that the Acting Superintendent
of Public Works told the defendant
that he suspended him. The objection
made by the defendant to the evidence
that conversations could not be |
shown until proof of embezzlement of |
some specific sum- did not sufficiently |
raise the question as to the relevancy
of the evidence of the suspension of |
the defendant.
"A stub book of receipts, cash re-
clerks in the Department of Public
Works under the defendants super
vision We're admissible in evidence to
show the method of transacting bust
ness in the office and that no entry was
made in those books of the receipts of
the money alleged to have been en-
bezzled, the audit act of 1898 not re-
curing that the Auditor General es-
fah 1sgl,
public accounts, the absence of evil
dence that he had done so does not
take from these books their character
as public records.
Refusal of the court to allow wit
ness TO the defendants signature TO a
receipt for money to be asked on cross
examination whether he had COM
pared the writing with other writings
of defendant held not to be prejudi-
cial error, the defendant having sub
stantially admitted the receipt of the
money"
-. II. Wrlghts case was the first
or a long and sensational series OF en-
bezzlement cases In the Public Works
Department and Treasury Depart
ment, lie was arrested in August
1909 IN the absence Of Superintendent
Boyd who was In san Francisco and
mad lefi the department In charge OF
Treasurer w. II, Wright The latter
suspended y, II Wright ana took the
steps which brought about the arrest,
shortly before W H. Wright himself
skipped $4,000 short IN his own de-
parimfrt There We're two counts In
ihe rhHTRcs against u. ~ Wright. the
hrst alleging tho snibeE1lement ~
81. shp in lho form ~ check pala
30 hin f0r The department BY the
Hawaiian fleciric Company, ana the
se0ona alleFlag ihe emhssslament ~
hshf lH The conviction hHs 90 ihe
hrsi eHarff Tho lllal toak place ~
ihr February term. 1905 AMI ihe 80
lfHl Boo hffn reualnH ffef since
~ faffFaff ~ nfpuiy Attorney GEM
ffai NfaFfEHtft ihH EHFr nnd D
puhHt Hpd aeelFp a psfia defended
A. ihs fafH sent A. ihs supreme