The Bad River news. [volume] (Philip, Stanley County, S.D.) 19??-1912, 1909-04-01

WYNN OC1OlC. Oll Vic uaN bclOIt
he had planned to go to town, but
instead went to husking corn for
the neighbor. While the inquest
was being held, he did go to Fort
Pierre and was arrested. He
asked for a lawyer, and after that
refused to talk. From that day
until he was put on the stand in
his own defense last week. he
made no explanation of the many
suspicious circumstances that
characterized his actions on the
day of the crime.
On the witness stand, the de-
fendant told a story that tended to
explain some of these circumstan-
ces, but under the merciless cross
examination of Attorney John +.
Hughes, he made poor showing.
There were many things that
could not be explained except by
defyin9 all the rules that govern
the actions Of logical and rational
human beings. His attorneys
kept him we'll in hand and pro-
tected him in measure, but on
the whole those who witnessed the
trial say that he made an unsatis-
factory witness. The jury must
have thought SO at any rate.
After retiring to deliberate the
jury took a ballot, and the vote
stood two for manslaughter and
ten for verdict of murder. The
latter verdict would have meant
one of two things to the defend
ant, sentence of life imprison-
ment or the inhiction of the death
penalty. In this view of the
matter the defendant may consid-
er that he got off very lucky, and
that by close shave.
A word might be said in regard
to the verdict. Although right
aud proper under the instructions
of the court, it was the most un-
reasonable one that the jury could
have arrived at. A manslaughter
verdict presupposes such circum-
stances of aggravation or assault
on the part Of the victim, as will
lower the crime from one of cold
blooded murder to manslaughter.
Though that could be presupposed,
the fact that an unarmed, defense
less girl. alone, is shot through the
back of the head renders such a
we'll nigh preposter-
GUS. The crime, whoever com
mitted it, could not logically be
considered anything else except
murder, and the verdict under the
circumstances could not ordinarily
be anything except an acquital or
guilty of murder.
The case has had a long history.
At the January term following
the crime the case went out of
court and over the term on ac-
count of an irregularity in the re-
turn made by the justice that held
the preliminary hearing. At the
July term a Stanley county jury
disagreed, and the case was taken
on change of venue to Hyde
county. There the case was tried
with the result that we have stated.
From a legal point of view, the
case has been most ably and
stubbornly fought on both sides.
At the trial in this county the de-
fense on account of the strategic
position they occupied, rather had
the hest of it. Bnt they were
smoked from cover at Highmore,
forced to put the defendant on the
stand, and we're in general given a
pace that made them step lively.
None of this was at any time due,
however, on either side to mistakes
of counsel. On the contrary il
was a battle of a pair of the
shrewdest criminal lawyers in this
state, and the advantages gained
were the advantages that grow
out of proper probing of the
weak spots in the other fellew'>
case. While both have been as.
sisted at various times by othc,
counsel. Judoe (Iaffv of Pierre