The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1909-07-16
LEWIS SNYDER
IS RELEASED
Evidence Not Sufficient To
Convict. l
DETECTIVES were TANGLED
One Man Contradicted
The Other.
Crowd Which Attended the Trial Dur
Ing the Afternoon ana Evening Was
Very Dcmonstratiye When Points
Were Scored.

After a battle, which lasted from
one O'Clock in the afternoon until S:3O
p. m, Thursday Lewis Snyder was
acquitted of the charge of selling in
toxicating liquor, contrary to Rose
law provisions, to william Il. Stillwell.
and James p. Bennett two Morrow
county men who have been doing de-
tective work for the Law and order
league for several weeks.
The mayors court was packed to
capacity both afternoon and evening
There were to be seen the adherents
of both sides I'm the "wet" and "dry"
contest. When either side gained a
point sympathizers gave vent to their
Feelings In no uncertain manner and
the court was obliged to rap for or
der many times.
When the verdict was announced.
the wet sympathizcrs IN the court
room and those who were unable to
get In let out great cheer which
continued for several minutes until
stopped by the officers.
The prosecuting witness was Will
bert II. Stlllwell in this the first case
that has been up for trial. on the
stand Stilwell did not prove bad
witness. He said that he made his
home with his father near Marengo,
Morrow county He claimed to have
been in company with James p. Ben
rett on July 4, when the two went
TO the snyder home on North Main
street and purchased two bottles of
beer. which they drank, and a bottle
of whisky. 1t was the claim of the
prosecution that a bottle produced by
Stillwell In court was the one pur-
chased from Snyder. The bottle con-
tanned whisky, they claimed, and was
labeled with the date and the hour
of the purchase.
On cross-examination. the attorneys
for the defense. l.. E. Myers and
Fred w. Warner. brought out the
fact that Stllwell has led roaming
existence for the past twenty years:
that he had been arrested on one oc-
caslon, and that he has just been paid
S65 as part compensation for his serv-
ices. He admitted that he came here.
employed by the league, for the pur-
pose of catching bootleggers. on the
whole Stlllwell did not make q bad
witness. although given rather Sc
we're grilling by the attorneys for the
defense.
The Law and Order league lost its
case principally through the conflict
ing testimony given the court by
James II. Bennett, Stillwell's partner.
Benefits answers were most vague.
He tipped over the plaintiffs exhibit
"A" to-wit: a bottle containing a fluid
alleged to be whisky, running the
finish on the top of the mayors desk,
when getting into the witness chair.
The bottle broke and all of the con-
tents was spilled.
Benefits testimony connlcted a
great deal with that of Stillwell's.
Stlllwell had told that the whisky was
purchased about ten o'clock. Bennett
said II was about 1870 o'clock. Ben
nett admitted. when crosse examined,
that he had been arrested once pre-
vlously. He said that he came here at
the request of Stlllwell to prosecute
and catch bootleggcrs. Both he and
Stillwell admitted having been drunk
on many occasions, while securing ev-
idencc and making friends with those
they expected to ensnare. Bennett
claims to be a high officer In the Ma
sonic fraternity at MI. Gllead. He is
a carpenter by trade. Both he and
Stillwcll declared that they had no
contract with the league as to the
amount of money they are to re-
ceive. The court would not allow the
defense to force the witness to an
swer AS to whether they expected
more money providing they secured a
large number of convictions. 1t was
the purpose of the attorneys to show
the likelihood or the possibility OF
manufactured evidence for financial
gain.
For the defense Snyder himself
was the principal witness. He ad-
mltted that both Stillwell and Ben
nett had been to his house on the day
in question. but not at tho hour they
claimed. Other witnesses, Thomas
Kelly. w. j, O'Keefe, Hosea Gay. AL
phcnse Cusic and Mrs. Snyder tssti-
fed as did the defendant, and all de-
clared that neither Stillwell nor Ben
nett had purchased any liquor while
they were at the snyder home.
Once during the time that Bennett
was on the stand, Stillwell was re-
buked for prompting him.
In rendering his opinion the court
declared that the plaintiffs testimony
was conflicting in many of Its import
ant parts while the testimony of the
! defendant. given by witnesses fully as
| reliable, was more convincing. He
| concluded with the remark that tho
prosecution had failed to produce a
! preponderance of evidence, that tho
defendant was guilty 'Of the of.
fense alleged and dismissed tn cease.
The Law and order league mem.
bers were greatly disappointed at tho
failure of their first prosecution e
! secure conviction but declared thai
| they will proceed with the others ant
Will continue to use similar methods
to stamp out the selling of liquor.
Eymon and Thompson represented
the league and Elmer II. Boyd, city
solicitor, represented the city in the
case.