Palestine daily herald. [volume] (Palestine, Tex.) 1902-1949, 1908-06-19

/ wanted to review my Official rec
ord somewhat in detail for the pur
pose of showing what work | have
done, the business methods pursued
and the present state of the dockets
but / will have to give most of my
time and attention to Mr.. Bishops at
lacks ON my record in criminal cases
In his letters to the voters of Houston
and Henderson counties he promises
to make them better judge in Grim
inal matters than 1 have made. He
does not attack my record in civil
cases, nor does he refer to my official
record in Anderson county.
In one letter he says l have been
reversed in more than half OF the
criminal cases appealed from Houston
and Henderson counties, and in a let
ter addressed to the voters of Hender-
son county he says | have been re-
versed in every murder case tried by
me in Henderson county. This last
PosoiINSis ~, ioi
there were number of convictions in
murder cases in Henderson county in
which there were no appeals, as was
the case in the other two counties. 1t
is true there were three appeals in
murder cases in Henderson county in
which | was reversed, and three that
| remember in Houston county. On
the other hand, recall three murder
convitions in Anderson and four in
Houston that were appealed and af-
firmed
l have read somewhere a statement
that fifty per cent of all cases in the
United States that are appealed are
reversed. According to that, my rec
ord of affirmances in murder cases is
above the average for all cases; but
when you add the civil cases, then my
record makes an extremely fine show
ing.
In order that my record may be
fully understood, l will state here in
general terms: l have never been re-
versed in Anderson county in any
case, civil or criminal, and none of
my predecessors can say as much. /
have never been reversed in Houston
county in any civil case save one, and
that is still pending on motion for re-
hearing; | doubt if any of my prede-
cessors can say the same l have
-pever1 been reversed in apN-eiril- Lease
tried before me, without jury, and
that is a most remarkable showing. / |
have never been reversed by the Su |
preme Court in any case, though | re-
call the fact that the Supreme Court |
has affirmed me in several cases |
where the Court of Civil Appeals has
turned me down. Now, in view of the |
attacks made on me by Mr.. Bishop, / |
assert that for the length of time and |
the number of cases tried, no district |
judge in the state can show a better,
if as good, a record. In civil cases, | |
have been reversed six or seven
times and affirmed about twenty-five !,
times or more; the Court of Criminal !
Appeals has reversed me thirteen
times and affirmed me thirteen
times. My court has been almost con-
unuously in session and / have tried
a great many cases in which no ap-
peals were taken. / should like to /
compare my record with other judges,
but it takes time, and am very busy
with court matters.
Before | review the criminal cases
in which | have been reversed, / call
attention to what my friend Ned Nor
ris says is the cause of so many Grim
lnal causes being reversed on appeal
1t is this: After trial and conviction
in the district court, the case passes
from the district attorney to the as
sistant attorney general, and he, not
being familiar with the record, in the
very nature of things, cannot be
ioi INT lawyer, WHO |
carries the case up, and, therefore,
the higher court is not advised fully
as to the record
l shall review as far as | can the
cases in which | have been reversed,
and let the reader Judge as to wheth-
er the reversals are any reflection on
me, and | proceed as follows:
Nathan Patterson, charged with
rape of girl under fifteen years of .
age, was remanded to Jail by a justice {
Of the peace on his failure to give
100000 bond to await the action of {
he grand jury. Defendant was {
brought before me on habeas corpus c
md / refused to discharge him On C
appeal the case was reversed and the 5
defendant discharged, Judge Davidson j
'endering the opinion and Judge il
Brooks being absent The proof S
howed the girl was under fifteen, V
nd the defendant had made a written is
statement before the justice of the