Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1911-10-15
Nebraska
ALDRICH PARDONS DIRKSON
Governor Grants Clemency Against
Pardon Board Report.
ADHEREs TO VIEW OF YEIsER
Neglected by Lawyers and He
Has served Minimum Term
Alpeady for Offense.
(From a sad Correspondent.l

LINCOLN. Neb., oct. H.-CSpecial.)-
For the first time since the State Board
of Pardons was created, Governor Aid
rich has granted executive clemency
against the recommendation of the board
He issued a pardon today to Harm Dirk
son of Boyd county, who had served two
and one-half years of a six-year sentence
Dirkson was alleged to have had Grim
NAL relations with his stepdaughter, a
girl of 10 years.
Dirkson has always claimed that he
was convicted as the result of a con-
spiracy carried out by his wife and
others. Although his stepdaughter gave
birth to child, Dirkson insisted that he
was in no way responsible for her con-
dition.
After Dirkson was accused OF the crime
his wife secured divorce, with alimony.
Dirkson decided to his attorney several
hundred acres Of $50 an acre land After
his conviction the attorney neglected or
refused to file with the supreme court
a plea for a review of the case within
the time required by law.
Governor Aldrich issued the following
statement Of his view Of the case;
After an examination of the bill of ex-
ceptions in the above mentioned case,
several things are apparent:
First-As the record discloseS there
never was any competent and sufficient
evidence to entitle the jury to bring in
q verdict of guilty for the reason that
the stepdaughter who was seduced made
several conflicting statements as TO who
was her seducer and her evidence on the
witness stand in the court below was not
corroborated by any material testimony
which the supreme court OF our state
has time and again held was essential to
q conviction where the defendant posi-
lively denies the act.
Second--The accused was homesteadeT
in Boyd county and is a man 81
years OF age and during all his life
has been Woodworking, industrious and
frugal, minding his own business and in
all respects law-abidlng citizen, and
against whose name at any previous time
has anybody mentioned aught against
him. He enjoyed the confidence and
friendship OF all Of his neighbors which
10 attested by the signatures OF these
neighbors in the precinct in which he
lived for so many years.
Lawyers Neglect Cnse.
Third-Through the neglect or mis-
take of his attorneys the case was
never reviewed by the supreme court
by reason of the fact that his attor-
neys did not file the bill of exceptions
and transcript within the time re-
quired by law. / am morally certain
that had the supreme court been given
the opportunity to review this verdict,
that they would have set aside the
verdict OF the jury on law ana TACT
Fourth Dirkson, the defendant,
as before said, is a man 81 years of
age. He has already been confined in the
penitentiary for nearly three years past,
having practically served the minimum
sentence for such offenses.
"Al things taken into consideration,
even If the defendant were guilty, his
age and his previous character, he has
undoubtedly been punished enough.
concur in the findings of a member OF
the pardons, Mr.. Yeiser in the conclu-
sions, which he draws from the bill OF
exceptions. In my Judgment. they are
amply warranted by the bill of excep-
tons. l therefore concur in the
recommendation of Mr.. Yeiser and it Is
my decision that from the facts and the
law in the case MIR. Dirksen should be
pardoned and 1 therefore this day have
granted the same.
John o. Yeiser Of Omaha made a
minority report to the governor, recon-
mended clemency to Dirkson. The other
members Joined in an adverse state
ment.
Governor Aldrich has followed the
recommendation of the board of pardon
ing George Davis of Douglas county
convicted of robbery. He is afflicted with
dropsy and is not expected to live long