The Boise citizen. (Boise, Idaho) 1906-1910, 1907-01-04
THE LANSD0N
WHITEW ASH
FdrCiCdI Trial Held at
OdIdW6II
SOLID REPUBLICAN
JURY EMPANELLED
Judge Smith Directs That a Yer
dict of HGQuittdI Be Rendered
in Case

The trial and acquittal of Robert Lans-
don on the charge of embezzling public
funds turned out to be a legal farce and
was one of those cases, now unfortu-
nately very common, that bring law
yers and courts into disrepute. Mr.
Lansdon had no defense and made none.
The case was taken out of the hands OF
the jury by the trial judge, who ordered
verdict of acquitttal The facts of the
case are well known but will bear re-
peating. A sheep man named Brown
paid Lansdon $16350 taxes on his sheep
Lansdon on the same day represented
to the county commissioners that Brown
had paid $40 taxes on the sheep, under
the grazing tax law, in Idaho county and
was entitled to rebate of that amount,
which he obtained but never paid to
Brown. Brown swore he never asked
for this rebate and was not entitled to
it and that his sheep never grazed in
Idaho county This statement of facts
is undenied by Lansdon save by his plea
of not guilty and the statement at the
preliminary that there must have been
some mistake in the matter
In the trial at Caldwell, according to
the press reports Judge Smith sustained
a motion to instruct the jury to bring
in a verdict of not guilty because it
was not shown that Lansdon had not re-
paid the money to the county. just why
the prosecution left this loop-ho1e they
can best answer themselves There is
some hint in the daily press, also, that
Judge Smith and Lansdon's attorney, A.
A. Fraser, construed the proof offered
as tending to establish the crime of OBJ
taining money under false pretenses in
stead of embezzlement and, therefore,
that the latter charge must fail
Mr. Lansdon is to be congratulated
upon the ability of his counsel, the lack
of perception by the prosecution and
the technicalities of the law. He will
come to Boise to serve as secretary
of state and as a member of Governor
Gooding's land board, instead of tax
ing up his residence elsewhere in this
city.
1t is idle for Mr.. Lansdon's defenders
in the Republican press to speak of his
'vindication." He was sufficiently popu-
lar in Washington county to be elected
assessor in 1902 and sheriff in 1904, al
though bitterly fought in his campaign
for the latter position his bondsmen |
as assessor even asking to be relieved
because OF his alleged gambling proclivi- |
ties. In 1906 his neighbors who had
twice elected him to office refused longer
to stand by him on account of this
charge upon which he has Just escaped |
and Washington county gave his op-
ponent approximately 1000 majority for
of state and Mr.. Lansdon Sc
cured a change of venue for his trial |
Surely his neighbors, who had been his I
friends and supporters, did not desert
him because charges had been "trumped |
u" against him which they would have
but they expressed by their bal
lots their verdict as to his guilt or inno-
cence. Fortunately for him tile Nor
mon vote was sufficiently strong in the
state to pull him through tagging be-
lind with the governor at the tail end
If the Republican ticket.
The Caldwell News makes the fol-
owing comment regarding the farcical
rial
When the prosecution was through
With its teetimony-the attorney for the
lefense moved that the court instruct
he Jury to bring in verdict of ac-