The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-06-05
GETS A
LIFE SENTENCE
Board OF Pard0Hs Comes to
Rescue at Eleventh Hour.
WAS TO HAVE DIED FRIDAY
EXECUTIVE SESSION LASTS AL
MOST TWO HOURS.

Charles C'Dutch Charlie') Botha will
not be executed Friday for the shoot
Ing and killing Of his wife and william
Ilbbetts. The state board of paTdOns
yesterday afternoon committed the
death sentence To life Imprisonment
The decision was not reached until art
er the board had discussed the merits
or the case in executive session Tor one
hour and fifty minutes. Tt ls under
stood the vote was two TO three in
favor of life sentence.
When seen al the prison less than an
hour after the board had acted. BOtha
had not recovered his compOsure. He
was stlu bit agltated he was SO
affected that he could not thank his at
UOuey. Judge III. M. Warner of Provo,
for what he had done for him.
Il can't tell YOU how I FEEL said
BOtha. This is a time when words
cannot express feelings which come
from the heart. The only thing I can
do Is 10 let my actions speak for them
selves. i promise to be a model prison
en- You VIII never hear any bad re-
ports from me through the warden"
Wants to Educate Himself.
Turning to Warden Arthur Pratt,
Botha said:
Il wrecked my life in a second. Tt
did not seem right to me that I should
be executed for what I did that sec
Ond. / am grateful 20 you, warden. for
what you have done for me. ] viii show
how I appreciate it by doing as i should
while here"
When asked what he would do now.
BOJha said
when I get some money I want to
buy some books. want to learn metal
metal"
And there he stopped, being unable
TO pronounce in his broken German
the word i'm his mind.
You mean metallUrgy," inteTpOlated
Judge Warner.
Yes. that's what / mean. quickly
responded Botha, not attempting to re-
peat the word after his attorney You
know I am a miner. j want TO learn
that part of It,"
Judge Warner Greatly Pleased
After the interview Warden Pratt
said he would probably put BOtha in
the cooking department Of the prison
and teach him the bakery trade, add
ins:
at viii be q few days before the manl
Is able TO so 10 work You must re-
member he has been Ign a single cell for
two years, with the possibility OF his
execution hanging over his head by
day and by night. Physically he is in no
condition now 10 work A few days in
the fresh air in the prison yard viii re-
store his health. Then I viii probably
put him i'm the bakery"
When asked what he thought of the
boards decision Judge Warner said-
1T is the greatest victory OF its kind
ever won in the state. Naturally ] am
proud Of the outcome I had taken
personal interest ia the man. and was
so drawn toward him that had he been
shot next Friday I would never have
rr.r- -a HrrHs- !
Says Prejudice Existed.
att seemed like an almost hopeless
case from the start, but 1 did the best
j could, / became convinced from the
outset B0tha never had a fair trial
Even the state supreme court went be-
yond its usual bounds to pass judgment
upon him tt spoke Of him as a men
ace 10 society and a man dangerous TO
live. You could not blame the judges,
because they were not acquainted with
the true facts i'm the case. They had
only legal facts TO pass upon. and it
held out little light on the humane side
Of the man.
"Botha was surrounded by an ap-
paTently inpeuetTablC atmosphere Of
prejudice through which the light of
justice casts its feeble rays hut dimly.
1Ien who could have placed the man in
e. different atmosphere refused to come
10 my assistance. I was terribly han
diCapped. But I actually believe I'm
the innocence of the man from a muir
der I'm the first degree standpoint. and
for that reason worked as I did. Tt
would have been a mistake to have
shot him Friday
Hearing Lasted Two Hours.
The review of the case before the
board lasted two hours Judge Warner
said ne had been unable TO procure the
aHdaVits which he wanted because the
people 10 whom he wrote refused 90
pay any attention 10 his letters and he
did not have time to go down into san
Juan county and try to induce the peO-
pie TO give him the documents which he
wanted. He said il lay in the power Of
the board 10 postpone the execution
long enough to issue subpoenas for the
people, adding.
If you viii place them upon the wit
ness stand. I viii prove by Iibbetts'
own friends that they had warned him
TO let Charles wife alone, OF he would
be killed"
After making an appeal from a hui
name point of view Judge Warner
dWelt at length upon the fact that
B0tha had not had fair trial.
When District Attorney W. d. Liv-
Hgston. who prosecuted. Botha. spoke.
he said the man had had a fair trial.
Judge Warner Interrupted him suftl-
GENTLY long upon several occasions
during his speech. 20 read extracts
from the abstract of record, proving
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