Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1906-07-19
Supreme Court Decides
State vs.. Bass ct ais,
No Opinion---Entry Judgment
for the Defendants"
Cases Were Instituted at Bangor by Sec.
PTiagle Of Civic League.

Bangor. Me-. July 1S.-(SpeciaD.- In
a receipt handed down Wednesday from
the full bench Of the supreme court in
the case Of State VS.. Bass ct. ais, no
opinion, judgment is given in favor of
the contention of the defendants. This
is the rescript:
State of Maine VS.. Joseph p Bass.
NJ. Robert Harrigan and Frederick
Strickland. Whitehouse, j. Rescript, no
opinion.
1t appears from the agreed state
ment that at the time Of said COM
plant and prior thereto and ever since,
said newspaper the Bangor Daily Com
mercial. was published by the j. p.
Bass Publishing Co.." q corporation
duly organized and existing under the
laws Of this State. and having a CAPT
tai stock fully paid in of $4,000, and
that said capital stock is and was all
owned at the time of said complaint
by the respondents above named. And
that the notice of the sale or keeping
for sale. of intoxicating liquors above
named, and as describing in the com
plant and warrant was published with
the knowledge of the respondents above
named"
1t is thus apparent that the facts adj
mitted in the agreed statement are en-
tirely Insufficient to support the allega-
tons in the complaint. The material
in the complaint obviously
are, that the defendants were the own
ers and publishers of the Bangor Daily
Commercial and published in it the ad-
VertiSement in question; but in the
agreed statement it is admitted that
the paper was published by THE j. =.
Bass Publishing Co, i corporation duly
organized and existing under the laws
of the State"
There is no further statement of fact
that the capital stock of this corpora
ton was all owned by the defendants
at the time of said complaint, which 1t
has been seen, was made six days after
the publication of the prohibited notice.
But the agreed statement fails to dis
close any admission that these defend
ants had any interest whatever i'll the
Bangor Daily Commercial, either as
or otherwise, at the time
of the commission of the alleged Of
lPitt u Tue Ill VI [fl'iii' i'V's
1t is an elementary principal OF
criminal law and procedure. it is true.
that in misdemeanors all who know
ingly participate in the commission of
tin, offence are deemed principals and
may be indicted and convicted either
Jointly or severally. Bish. CIR. Proc.
Sect. 545; State vs.. Sullivan. So Maine.
AZ: but the agreed statement only adj
mits that the prohibited notice was
.'publishcd with the knowledge of the
defendants"
Even if it be conceded that the mere
fact that such an advertisement was
published by the corporation with the
knowledge of the defendants, would
have been sufficient to render them IA
biz. rs principals for participating in
the act, if they had been shown TO he
the only stockholders at the time OF
The, publication, there can be no reason
able ground for holding them reSpon-
sible for the publication in question,
when there is an entire absence of any
evidence tending To show that at the
time of the alleged offence they had
any interest whatever, either as stock
holders, or otherwise. in the property
of the J. p Bass Publishing Co. or
any participation in the conduct of its
affairs.
According to the stipulation accom-
panying the agreed statement III the
case. the entry must, therefore be 1udS-
ment for the defendants.
The decision is on several cases origi-
mating in the Bangor municipal court
L. paalnl1intg
by Rev. Fl. N. Pringle of Watervliie'
secretary Of the Maine ClVlc League
against the publishers Of the CONNER