The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1909-12-04
FOURNIER'S SECOND TRIAL
WILL BE HELD NEXT WEEK
Man Once Convicted of Having Killed N. O. Dahl to Be
Given New Trial at Brainerd-Killing Of Dahrs
Was Atrocious Crime:

ported that they had found the body
of N. o. Dahl under the roots of a
big balsaam tree near his shack.
Eugene Caldwell and Paul Four
nier were arrested, charged with
killing Dahl, and both men were
bound over to the grand jury. The
grand jury returned indictments
against Fourier and James Wesley,
the later having lived at the home
of Eugene Caldwell, and suspicion
was directed against him, connecting
him with the crime.
Fourier was held in the county
Jail, awaiting the finding of James
Wesley, whose whereabouts were
unknown.
On October II, 1904, County At
torney Loud had the indictment
against Fourier annulled, the evil
dence against the prisoner not being
considered strong enough to warrant
trying him on the charge of murder.
Wesley remained at large and his
whereabouts were a mystery to the
officials.
The body of Miss Aagot Dahl was
found on August II, 1904, four
months after her disappearance from
her claim. The bones were put into
a box and brought to Bemidji, and
were afterwards taken to Crookston
for interment. In spite of every
effort of the authorities of Beltrami
county, the mystery of the identity
of the murderers of the Dahl's re-
NAMED as deep as ever and there
appeared no possible solution of the
affair.
AS time passed, the crime was
seldom alluded to, and was in fair
way to have been entirely forgotten.
On March II, 1905 "a year after
the discovery of the absence of the
DahPs from their claims) James
Wesley was arrested at Green Bay,
Wis.,, where his parents were residing.
On September 20, 1905, the
grand jury returned indictments
against James Wesley and Paul
Fourier, charging them with killing
the Dahl's.
Much was done to secure evil
dence that would convict Fourier
and Wesley of the crimes of which
they had been accused, but it was
necessary to annul the indictments.
The grand jury in April, 1907,
indicted both Fourier and Wesley
on the charges of having killed N. O.
Dahl and also his daughter, Aagot
Dahl.
Wesley was tried first, on the
charge of having killed Aagot
Dahl. The jury brought in a
verdict of guilty of murder in the
first degree, the confession alleged
to have been made by Wesley to
one Foote, when he and Wesley
were occupying cells in the Bel
trami county Jail, being largely re-
sponsible for the verdict brought
in by the jury.
Fourier was tried Immediately
after the conclusion of the Wesley
trial, he beng charged with killing
N. O. Dahl. Fournier's brother,
Owen, gave very damaging testi-
mony against Paul, claiming Paul
had told him that he had killed
the Dahls.
Fourier was taken to the state
on April 18th, 1907. He has worked
in the shoe department, and Sheriff
Hazen says that Warden Wolfer
told him that Fourier was a well-be.
haved prisoner.
Fourier was brought back to Be.
midi in July of this year and has
been confined in the Beltrami
county jail since that time. His
attorney, C. w. Scrutchin, procured
a change of venue from. Beltrami
county to Crow Wing county and
the trial will be held at Brainerd, the
county seat of CT wv Wing courtyard
the trial will be watched with inter.
est by the people of Beltrami county,
the killing of the Dahl's being we'll
remembered as most astroscious
murders.