Jamestown weekly alert. [volume] (Jamestown, Stutsman County, D.T. [N.D.]) 1882-1925, 1904-01-14
The Payne-Pratt Rape Case Tried
Again and DismiSsed--Rire of
Kensal Sent Over for a
Long Term.
The Dawson Robbery Case from Courtenay Heard
and the Defendant Gets One Year in the Peril
tentiary---Estray Case Again Disniissed--Re-
sumo of the Business Of the TerM-

Tue Payne rape case seems to have
been one of those unfortunate 'at1alrs
that occasionally gets aired In the
courts with no apparent good results
for any of the principals. The de-
femant testified that he was not
guilty OF the crime charged against
him and the jury brought in averdict
to shat end there being no positive
preof to the contrary. The defendant
has been lying in Jail for about seven
months. He was convicted onado.m M
er trialo basterdy, and fined BlOOo,
which he was unable to pay and 'Bstill
resting under that conviction. Ihe
giFls family we're not such as to
protect her or render her any assist
ance, the mother practically desertine
the daughter in her extremity while
the father has gone to parts unknown,
flying from a criminal charge in the
hands of officers of thelaw. Thecflld
was brought into court to suffer the
indiQnity OF present publicity and to
have fastened on it's name terever the
unhappy fact OF it's illegitimacy under
the law. The mother is substantiallya "a
county charge. The marrow margin
of ten months in the age OF the girlat
the time the crime Is alleged, only,
intervened between an imprisonment
OF not less than Eve years for Payne,
had he been convicted, and what the
Law says is no crime. The,caSe seems
to be an, unusal one in Decentralization
Of unfortunate results for both parties,
In most any aspect OF the case as It
has turned out it would have'seenefar
better fer all concerned IT the GIRL
her parents, and friends had smlght to
avoid publicity instead OF seeking it in
the courts. On the condctionAof bas-
taxdy Payne had Judgement Of $1,000
entered against him and being unable
to pay same languisi1ed in jail for
some three months when he would
have been entitled to releaSe.Lnde1
the poor debtors process. He was,
while serving this term, arrested on
the rape change, hearing given and
he was bounG over to appear at the
district court Payne strenuously de.
nies that he is father OF the child, and
SO by inference some one else is, and a
report connects, another party whoileat
the state. Another point involved in
the case, of interest to lawyers as well
as others, was whether in such q case,
the defendant maybe convicted on the
uncorrob0rated testimony 6 the
prosecuting witness. II she was an
accomplice in the,alleged crime then
her testimony would have to be sub.
stantiatedb by othereyidence, witnesses
or circumstances; and il an accom-
plice how could the other party be
alone held guilty? The court charged
the jury toconsider whether the prose
cutting witness was an accomplIce and
If SO was her testimony ,cerroborated:
The court later RECALLED the jury and
notified them that on further con.
.sideration he was of the opinion that
the evidence showed the girl to be, in
law, an accomplice and that no suffi-
cient corroboration of her testimony
was given to warrant conviction.
The jury accordingly brought in a
verdict of not guilty.
BLIND PIG oAsE.
AS soon as the Payne case went to
the Jury, the states attorney moved
for trial the case OF State vs. James B.
Rice. Rice is the man who is said to
have terrorized Kensal one day last
July after imbibing too freely of the
fire water. On that occasion six COM
plants we're sworn out against him,
part Of which were afterwards drop
ped, and he was bound over to the
present term OF court. Still later he
was arrested on the charge Of keeping
a blind pig, and this case is the one on
which he was first tried. He is de-
Tended by Messers Knauf & Knauf and
by Attorney White Of Darlington.
A demurrer to the information was
presented and argued by Mr.. Knauf.
The defendant is charged with the
crime Of a nuisance, committed, ac-