Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1907-03-02
Trapped in His Effort to Prove
An Alibi He Tells a Thrill.
ling Story.
rs CRATER BY PROFESSION.
Uncovers a Condition of Crime in
Salt Lake That is Almost With
out Western Parallel.
First Affirmed That He tTad Never
Been Hcre--Salt Lake Tailors Show
They Made Ills Clothes.

That there is a great deal of fir
below the smoke of the charges sains
Chief of Police George A. Sheets ani
concluslvely shown In two hours OF
rapid shot testimony before Judge
whitaker this morning.
When court opened at 10 o'clock
there was some doubt in the minds OF
few as to how much anmus swayed
The work of the prosecution in the
case, and how much evidence there
fliates. when it closed at IL o'clock
the bald outlines OF a specific case had
been made out in teIrifeally vivid pro-
portions. Parent, one OF the fake
policemen. was on the stand. He
spoke clearly, with an accurate mind
for details, and without any visible
nervousness, or desire TO shield any
one. His story WIS of organized graft,
with himself as head CRATER. chief
Sheets as a man bought at s1e0 a
week to let 1t go on. Raleigh as man
who came to keep in touch with them,
and Newton. he police court lawyer
who made himself so notorious about
the office of Chiaf Sheets In the palmi-
est days of his career. as the go~be-
tween in money matters and in FIX
ing UP troubles for crooks.
GAMBLING HIS BUSINESS.
Under a severe cross-eSamination
from Atty. Samuel Thurman of coun-
sci for Sheets, he declared that gamb-
ling had been his business for three
years. He had piled the game in every
state of the Union except Massachu-
N.att, IIu,, .1,ix. hnA Ic1 .st,
Vermont and Connecticut: had been
arrested once In Kansas City and fined
$500. and another time In Dallas for dis
turbiu& the peace. 1e had never been
on the witness stand before, but de-
clared he was not turning states evil
derice. that he hoped for no reward or
immunity, and that his experience with
states evidence was that the fellow
who ''peacbed' always got the worst
OF 1t. HeNwas simply asked questions
hnd answered them honestly.
3Atty. Thurman tried anxiously to
SLOW thar he was influenced in making
his statements with the hope that he
would be set free If the defendants
we're convicted. He denied ever hav-
Ing been promised anything. or that he
hoped for anything, except TO get off as
lightly as he could.
What Thurman failed to bring out
as the motive, comes to the News
he was first brought here, Parent
based his whole defense on the grounds
that he was d stranger and had never
been here before He asserted this
solidly. and WAS backed up In II by an
attorney who WIS sent, or accompanied
him. from Denver, IL was thought by
those who wished 10 secure a confes-
sion. for the purpose Of preventing him
from ''pcaching."
TAILoRs "CRUsHED" HIM.
Iio was taken after his series OF de-
malls that he was ever here, into
private room, and confronted by two
tailors who declared they had made |
q suit Of clothes for him. The tailors
pulled off the clothes he had on and |
showed their FIRMS brand,
This crushed his spirit and he told |
his attorney that he was caught with
the goods" that he was convinced he
was In for a 30-year sentence, and
was going to tell the truth about the |
whole affair He then told all the |
facts to the attorney although he said
this morning that he had also told him
all these fact on the train coming here. |
He was not notified he was going to be
witness before court met this MORN
ing, and had only a few minutes mo-
tice before going oh the stand. He |
had held no conversation with offlcials |
in regard TO his testimony, and WAS not |
telling u rehearsed story.
When he started TO tell it, objections |
began to pour in from Soren y. Chris |
Jensen and Samuel Thurman, attorneys |
for the defendants, but Willard Ham
son led the witness through series OF |
questioning around most OF the objec- |
tons. and finally let him finish the en- |
tire story OF his operations. All ref |
erence 10 telephonIng Chief Sheets was |
kept out OF the record, but he told |
that he telephoned someone to make |
date with Sheets. and that Sheets |
Kept these appointments to receive
money at tho ISnutsford corner, and Oh |
State street near tho city hall.