The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1910-11-05
JUDGE GOss
DENIES STORY
OF D|SM|SsALS
Darlington Prohibition Cases
Were Dismissed by Order
Of Attorney General
HERALD'S STATEMENT DENIED
AND COURT RECORDS OFFERED
Correspondence and Telegram With
Department of Justice Published
and Reasons for Dismissal Given
Herald Asked to Correct Statement


Herald Asked to Correct Statement
The following communication from
Judge Goss is published in order that
ne may have fair hearing before the
public. AS is we'll known the Times
has not taken any partisan part in
the judicial fight, so far as any set
OF candidates is concerned. But this
does not estop us from giving the pub
lie the truth on any matter.
Certified copies of the court records
quoted have been iiled with the Times
SO that the reliability of the assertions
are uniquvocable.
Evening Times,
Grand Forks, N. D.
Gentlemen:
In Thursdays issue of the Grand
Forks Herald there appeared an edi-
torfal, censuring me for the dismissal
OF certain blind pig cases, commonly
known as the Mandan blind pig cases.
To vindicate myself before the people
of Grand Forks and community, and
your readers, have requested the pub
lication of the following article in the
Grand Forks Herald, and hope the
same will be published in full there
in, and also request you to publish
the same. 1t reads as follows:
Yours truly,
e. B. Goss.
To Grand Forks Herald,
In your issue of November 3rd, in
your editorial column, under the
heading Those Blind Pig Cases." you
state, among other things relative to
certain blind pig cases from Morton
county, as follows, quoting from your
article, and omitting parts thereof to
which have no exception:
The remaining twenty-four cases
were transferred to the jurisdiction of
Judge Goss, and were dismissed by
him, the states attorney of Morton
county having failed to prosecute.
The attorney general, through whose
activity the indictments had been Sc
cured, and who stood ready to prose-
cute. was not consulted, or notified, or
called in, and the slate was wiped
clean. Thus Of the thirty cases, or
the twenty-seven whose indictments
were not found faulty, three men
proven guilty, and whose punishment
awaits only the action of Judge Burke,
go Scott free, and, the other two
dozen were never brought to trial, be-
cause of the arbitrary course follow
ed by Judge Goss. With this attitude
toward the enforcement of the prohi-
bition law from the district bench,
what might we expect with the same
men on the supreme bench?'
Some days ago misinformed COM
mittee published statement in your
paper, from which l presume you
have assumed that 1 did arbitrarily
dismiss, while acting as district judge
in Darlington, Foster county, N. D.,
twenty-one blind pig cases, pending
OH indictments transferred from Nor
ton county to Foster county. You
have further assumed certain things
that are absolutely false, have left
former articles go unnoticed. as
with or in newspaper, and had hop
ed that you would be fair enough to
inform yourself of the actual facts be-
fore commenting editorially on the
matter; instead, 1t appears that you
are willing to publish matters without
consulting public records, and as
result give forth to the public your
opinions, based upon false state of
facts. For your information l place
with you certified copies Of the rec
ords relative t6a this matter, in the
case of the state of North Dakota
against Joseph Gels, and inform you
that the record in this case is identi-
cal with the record in seven of the
cases dismissed by me, the same state
of facts existing as to all of these dis
missals. trust this certified copy,
Under the original seal, and original
signature to the certificate Of copy of
s. j. Malen, clerk of the district court
Of Foster county of address Caring
ton, N. D., will be accepted by you
as proof. II it is not, kindly inform
yourself of the record, before publish
ing further erroneous statements as
to what you assume them to be.
You state, as above quoted editori-
ally, that the attorney general was
not notified. This is an absolute
falsehood, as the certified record of
the case, Of letter and kilograms
fled in the cases with the clerk, GER
titled. copies being placed before you
with this letter. conclusively prove
that the attorney general was notified
and not only failed to appear, but
moved the dismissal Of these cases
and Indictments, by telegram, and by
letter and besides by telephone.
Nothing could be further from tho
truth than your statements in this
connection. At the opening of the
term, March 81, 1910, in Darlington,
Foster county, these cases were at the
head ofS,the criminal calendar for
trial. The defendants were repre-
scented by; their attorney, Mr.. Faber.