The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1909-05-27
GUIlTYOFCONTEMPT
Tennessee Sheriff and Others
10 be Punished by u. s.
Supreme Court.
CHATTANOOGA lYsCHINc

sheriff si'ipr. D~pasy sa~rsn s.sl,son
and fuar Others p~~lAr~xi ~ sasc
Ccart tn hr Guilt. ST al Act of
Cont~snpt In Combining IN 1905 in
Conspiracy to Iyneh a N~gEo
Who Wa. Under Death sen,racs
for Rapc, and in who~, CASE the
saprcnr Court Had ssrAat~d New
Triai-An Uaa@aai Case.
Washington. May 24-For the art
time IN SO serious a case. the Sn-
preme Court OF the United states
mete out punishment for the crime
Of contempt of the court itself. and
the Importance of the occasion wiii
be enhanced by the number of IN.
defendants.
The proceeding will take place ia
connection with the cases Of sheriff
Shipp and Deputy Sheriff Gibsoa. Of
| Hamilton County. Tennessee and ~
four other residents Of that county
named. respectively. Williams. Nolan.
Padgett and May. These men we're
| to-day declared by the Court 10 be-
guilty OF an act of contempt In COM
bining in 1905 in conspiracy In
| lynch a negro named Johnson. sho
had been sentenced 10 death by the
local courts on the charge 81 rape.
and In which case the Supreme Court
had interfered 10 the extent Of grant
| ing an appeal which had the effect
of supersedcas On the night fol-
lowing the announcement OF the
Courts action Johnson was taken out
OF the jail in Chattanooga by mob
and lynched. There WAS no resist
ance on the part of the jail author
tiles and Shipp and a number Of his
deputies. az we'll as about twenty clti-
zens. were proceeded against on the
charge OF contempt OF the Federal
| Court.
The case has been pending ever
since and the number of defendants
| was from time To time reduced 10
| nine. or these nine three We're to-
day found guilty. while the other six
were ordered TO be brought into court
| next Tuesday for sentence. They will
be taken into custody immediately.
and will appear in court in charge
of Marshal Wright The sentence
may be either fine or imprisonment.
or both.
The case is regarded az OF eseep-
| tional interest because IL T. practical
| ly the first time that the highest
court In the United States has ever
undertaken to assert its dignity or To
| resent acts or words rejecting upon
It, In one previous ease some years
ago a defendant was fined for some
expression OF contempt. but the case
was so comparatively Insignificant as
to practically leave the present pro-
ceeding standing alone.
| In the cases of Sheriff ShIpp and
Deputy Gibson the court I'm effect de-
clares that there may be contempt In
failure OF officers OF the law 10 pre-
vent a crime In contempt Of the
court, and in taking cognizanCe OF an
| offense at SO great a distance. the
court for the first time asserts hy
action its right to compel the proper
respect for and treatment of it's veT-
diets In all parts of the Union.
Reviewing the proceedings In the
case OF Johnson. the negro who was
lynched, the Chief Justice pointed
out that even before the case was
brought to the Supreme Court there
had been many threats OF lynching
because OF the serious character OF
the negro's offense. Continuing. he
said OF the proceeding on the night
of the lynching:
| The assertions that mob violence
was not expected and that there was
no occasion for providing more than
the usual guard OF one man for the
jail In Chattanooga are quite unrea-
sonable and inconsistent with state
ments made by Sheriff ShIpp and his
deputies that they were looking for
a mob on the next day"
The Chief Justice pointed out that
. the jail had been left entirely un-
, guarded and In charge OF Deputy Glib
son, when precaution 10 guard the
, prisoner should have been taken.
/, The Chief Justice quoted literally
, from an interview given out by Shipp
some days after the lynching in which
Shipp said that he did not attempt 10
, hurt any OF the mob. and in which
I he charged the Supreme Court with
7 the responsibility for the lynehing
because of it's Interference In the
= case. Commenting on this utter
, ance. the Chief Justice said:
HE evidently resented the neces'
sary order Of this court as an allen
Intrusion, and declared that tbs
court was responsible for the lynch
1 ing. According to him the peopl'
: OF Hamilton County were willing te
: let the law takes It's course until y
became known that the ease would
not probably be disposed OF for foul
or five years by the Supreme Cour
4 of the United States. But he add
ed, the people would not submit u
\ this and | do not wonder at IT,.
|