Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1905-07-16
~CHAPLINE CONVICTED
JURY BEFORE sR,Nc,nc IN
VERDICT OF GUILTY ING HIS PUNISHMENT AT A FINE
OF s25-DRAMATIc SCENE CLOSING HOURS OF TR,A,

bribe and his punishment was fixed
at a fine of $25
The jury returned this verdict at
9:O5 o'clock last night. after spend
ing an hour and a half in actual de-
liberation on the case.
The case was given to the jury at
$3.50, and after taking one ballot the
Jurors were taken out to supper They
returned to the jury room at 7:5O
Kap' clock and an hour later notified the
q sheriff that they had reached YER
dict
# Judge Winfield and the attorneys
d were hurriedly summoned and reach
VI ed the courthouse about $50 o'clock.
II About Is or 90 others had gathered
Il in the court room when the jury was
called in.
Y Col A. W. Files, foreman of the
@ jury, handed the verdict to the clerk
Il and the latter read it. The verdict
was as follows:
eve, the jury, find the defendant
n guilty and assess his punishment at a
fine of twenty dcllars ($25).
Il "a. w. Files, Foreman"
How Verdict Was Received.
For a minute after the verdict was
read there was absolute quiet in the
d court room. The crowd was hardly
I prepared for the verdict. as the short
time required BY the jury to reach a
verdict was regarded as favorable to
the defendant. Before entering the
> court room. Chapline had apnarently
! been confident of verdict Ct ac1ut.
tai. When the verdict was read, his
]. face clouded and sat for several min
i utes without moving. The verdict was
apparently entirely uneXpe cted to
] him.
Judge Winfield asked the attorneys
] for the defendant if they dasirSd 6 =
poll the jury but they said they did
] not, and he thereupon discharged tn
jury. thanking the jurors for thei,
services
With the consent OF Senator Gray,
. representing the state. Judge Win.
| field announced that the defendant
/ would be allowed to go upon his old
bond until some further steps were
taken.
Senator Gray was the only one %
o4f u-l,N "a
state present when the verdict was re-
turned. NJ J. Manning, T. c. Trimble
and w. NJ Lewis of the defendants
counsel were present.
"some One Had to Be Victim"
Mr.. Chapline declined to make any
statement in regard to the result of
] the trial
"The only thing I care to say" he
said, "is that some one had to be the
victim
Charge He Was Convicted On.
The charge upon which Chapline
was convicted was that he conspired
with NJ D. l.. Cook to bribe members
of the legislature to vote for the
Cache River levee bill and that they
induced A. F. Maberry to put up in
Oscar Davis hands checks for $1.475,
the money to be paid to Cook if the
bill became law. The offense
charged is a misdemanor, and under
the statute the punishment provided
is fine of not more than $3.50 or inn
prisonment in the county Jail for not
more than one year. or both fine and
Imprisonment.
This case was the second of the
"bribery" cases to be tried. In the
pnly case tried, that in which Senator
covington was charged with accept
ng bribe in connection with the
ate capitol bill, the defendant was
equitted.
Second Case Continued.
Ihe second case against Chapline,
nlch was set for yesterday, was con-
& nued by agreement for the term. No
ason was assigned for this action
III yond the fact that the grand jury
onvenes next Monday and there
uld have been no opportunity to
|Ss e the case UP Immediately. The
goes over until the September
a %. In this case Chapline is charg-
with Offering Representative Will
OF Perry county a bribe of 800
connection with the Killough levee
FANATIC Scene in Closing Hours.
closing hours of the Chapline
splracy case, which went to the
1uFx at $50 O'clock last night were
asFked by a dramatic scene in which
zpsecuting Attorney Rhoton and Col