The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1907-09-26
Charles Griffin Charged With Bur-
glary and Grand Larceny, Ac.
quilted by Juay
He TOLD A STRAIGHT STORY
The Witnesses Against Him Get Badly
Mixed in Their Testimony and Jury
Frees Man After Short Delhi
Grafton Over Verdict

Charles Griffin, the Milwaukee rail-
way man who has been in jail for the
last three weeks awaiting trial on
charges of burglary and grand lar
.ceny, is today free man, for just
after 5o'clock Tuesday evening the
jury which heard the evidence against
Griffin returned verdict finding him
not guilty of the charges against him.
Griffin owes his freedom to the fact
that he went on the stand aud told the
simple truth without making any eff
fort to relieve himself of any blame
that might be attached to him, and
the story was such a straightforward
one that the jury was convinced that
the man was not in any way GRIM
inally connected with the conspiracy
to rob the cars of the Northwestern
Railway Co.
The State made hard fight to con-
:vict Griffin and Adolph Moe, Charles
Hill and Archie Quayle, three former
men, were brought down
from Waupun to give evidence against
him with the robbery of the cars.
Their evidence, however, did not fit
in, and Griffin a soon as he took the
stand declared that there was con-
spiracy among the three convicts to
send him to prison with them on ac-
count of the fact that he had Sunin-o
tentional1y given out facts by which
the detectives of the company started
the investigation which resulted in
the arrest of the different men
charged with grand larceny and
burglary.
On the stand Griffin told a long
story of the trip which he had taken
while not an employee of the road and
which trip resulted in his arrest. He
admitted that he had drank with the
men and that the entire company was
drunk during the trip. He admitted
being in the car when the cases con-
tanning clothing and other articles
were broken open and admitted that
he had been present when the stolen
goods were divided and that suit of
clothes was set aside for him, but that
he had declined to take it. He even
that he had given a hand in
carrying. the trunks containing the
stolen goods. He was certain in his
statement that he did not get any of
the goods, and even the strongest evil
dence produced by the State did not
show that he had ever worn the suit
of clothes alleged to have been given
him from the plumber secured by the
car thieves. 20
Grifin's story was one that carried
great weight and it was told in way
to completely shatter the rather mud
died stories told by the three con-
victs. Griffin has been in jail for
more than thirty days and as soon as
the jury had returned its verdict he
fastened to go to his home in Mil
waukee. s2 a faE5
The case Of the state VS.. John
Andrae, another of the men arrested
in connection with the railway rob-
berries, was to have been taken up to-
day but when the case was called At
torney Doyle, of Kewaskum demanded
that the case be dismissed on the
grounds that Andrae had a right to
be tried in the county in which the
offense is alleged to have been COM
mitted. The motion brought out a
hot argument, but the Court sustained
the motion and if Ahdrae is tried he
must be arrested and tried in Wash
inptOn county.