The Spokane press. [volume] (Spokane, Wash.) 1902-1939, 1910-12-03

effort to serve a warrant upon him.
mined man with some ambition to
| be sheriff, laid before Sheriff Mad
den a plan for taking Deitz. Tie
plan was accepted. Thorbahn was
made deputy in charge, and other
deputies were sworn in Incident
ally Thorbahn git $1,000 for the job
and the deputies 80 cents an hour
for the time they served, day and
night.)
First an attempt was made to
ambush DeitZ on the road. Sheriff
Madden. Thorbahn and Deputy Van
Alstine hid by the roadside for sew
eral days waiting for Deitz to drive
| to town for mail
Clarence, Myra and Leslie Deitz
EN- route to Winter, fell into the
ambush. Thorbahn stepped from
his hiding place, called upon the
three to hold up their hands, and
| Immediately began to shoot. 1t
seems that Leslie flopped over the
side of the wagon-bed at the frs;
sign of danger, drawing a Luger
automatic as he went. Thorbahn,
who had Luger in each hand,
feared that Leslie would shoot from
the shelter of the wagon, hence his
hurried shooting. He fired wild at
Leslie, shot Myra through the
side at the waist and barked Clar
ence's arm, but missed the lucky
Leslie, who escaped after serving
as a target for a fusilade of shots.
Clarence and Myra were taken
into custody.
Then 25 or 80 deputies were
sworn in and Thorbahn led the at
tack on the Deitz cabin.
The clearing was closely be-
sieged for several days. Finally
Atty. Gen. Gilbert went in and
urged Deitz to surrender, assuring
him fair trial. If Deitz had ac-
cepted this assurance, it seems not
unlikely that he would have come
out of the dilemma with better
grace than he eventually did. But
he decided to fight it out to the
bitter end.
Each day Leslie would go up to
a little knoll some distance from
the house and scan the environs
for signs of the besiegers. Then
he would come down and his father
would take his place, sweeping the
circle of the clearing with a pair of
binoculars.
On the morning of Saturday, Oct.
8, as Leslie approached this knoll,
he was surprised by deputies. They
had strict orders to take him alive
but they bungled the holdup ana
began shooting. contrary to the or
ders of the sheriff. Leslie ran, and
the battle was ons 1t lasted from
$3.50 a. m. till p. m. Wildly fired
bullets peppered the ground for
rods, all about the Deitz buildings.
! Late in the forenoon Deitz ran
from the house to the barn, leaving
Mrs Deitz and the children lying
on the floor behind barricade of
furniture in the rear room Of the
house. 1t is supposed that he
climbed into the haymow and fired
from there through holes cut in the
roof. He was using smokeless
powder, however. and it is a diff
| cult matter to establish this to a
| certainty
While Deitz was in the barn Dep
uty Oscar Harp and several other
bold spirits crawled on their hands
and knees over the bald hill back
of the barn, in an endeavor to gain
the shelter of row of lumber piles
that commanded both house and
barn at short range. Harp was
shot and instantly killed.
Upon the question as to whether
Harp was shot by Deitz or by
stray bullet fired by a besieger,
hangs the present murder charge
against Deitz. If the defense can
show that there is a reasonable
doubt as to where the fatal bullet
came from it will be a difficult
matter to convict. 1t seems prob
able that this reasonable doubt can
be raised.
Deitz surrendered at 3 o'clock.
Wounded in the hand while run
ming back from the barn to the
house, he finally decided to yield.
Little Helen was sent out with
white flag. Now Deitz is in Jail
charged with the murder of Harp.
Mrs. Deitz and Leslie are held on
the same charge.
Incidentally, the coroner's jury
has already CONVICTED Deitz of
first degree murder"