The Fargo forum and daily republican., 1907-02-15


verdict. Everything else was insig-
nificant compared to that
"When a man is out in the woods in
storm, where lightning is striking
about him and trees are falling, he
/ does not mind the bite of mosquito
on his wrist.
! From the great mass of stuff You
/ admitted with the case, stuff that it
/ took twenty days to go through while
/ only two days were employed on the
| case, and all this dumped before the
! jury, who can say, even outside your
influence, upon what state of facts a
verdict was rendered, those properly in
the case or those, as I believe, inn
properly brought In.
! "At the beginning of the case you
! laid down certain lines outside of
which you said the attorneys for the
state could not SO.
You either changed, modified or
abrogated every rule you made at the
/ beginning.
"And l feel, your honor. am not
alone in my belief that the verdict
/ was brought about by over enthusiasts
| tic judicial acts Of yours.
1T is sometimes hard to appreciate
/ the state Of mind and heart that lies
back of outward manifestations.
During the course of the trial ]
often heard your honor make use OF
Ian expression, the import of which
/ was:
Not being able to get a mental
photograph of a mans mind when a
certain act was done, we must try to
arrive at the state of his mind by TAX
! ing in the circumstances and sur
roundings.
| II would very much like, Judge Pol
lock, to have a mental photograph OF
your mind when five minutes before
the jury came in, you went to the jury
room and said to the jury: Have you
yet agreed upon a verdict, and the
foreman said no, and you replied:
Well, you better l bid you good
night
! Il cannot impugn your intelligence
by believing you did not know better
You must have known your act was
highly improper.
Anyway, the supreme court will
consider it. Now have said more
! than / expected to say, and / can only
add that ! ask no mercy or favor from
this court"
In passing sentence Judge Pollock
| reviewed the case to considerable
length. The court introduced the SUBJ
ject as follows:
i In passing sentence upon YOU Mr.
Murphy, the path of duty leads the
court into ways extremely painful
The court recognizes the fact that
| there stands before it an old time and
prominent citizen Of the state. One
too, who by your genial good nature
and genuine good fellowship has sur
rounded yourself with many friends
Naturally they have not deserted you
in this your hour Of trouble. They be-
lieve in your innocence, Mr.. Murphy
and through the press and elsewhere
have expressed surprise at your con-
yiction."
| Concerning the report that he had
entered the jury room and had at
tempted to influence the jury, Judge
Pollock had the following to say:
THE rumor which was sent out and
which found its way into the press to
/ the effect, in substance, that had en-
tered the jury room and improperly
Iattempted to coerce the jury into
bringing in a verdict, is wholly with
out foundation in fact. so that it cam
not be urged that the jury were Inn
properly Influenced in view of the
| further fact that the court instructed
the jury. by written instructions
which We're constantly in their hands
that defendant in a criminal action
is presumed to be innocent until the
contrary Is proved. and in case of a
reasonable doubt as to whether his
guilt is satisfactorily shown he is en-
titled to be acquitted; and further that
the law requires that no man shall be
convicted of a crime until each and
every one of the jury is satisfied from
the evidence in the case to the exciu-
sion of every reasonable doubt that the
defendant Is guilty as charged"