Shoshone journal. [volume] (Shoshone, Idaho) 1884-1931, 1911-04-21
HALEY BANK CASE
NEARING ITS END
1T IS PRESUMED THE CASE
WILL GO TO THE JURY
NEXT WEEK.

The district court is still occupied
with the Haley bank case. The
trial began on April 10 and on the
Goth the prosecution closed its
evidence, thus consuming 10 days
In that time 30 witnesses were call
ed upon to give evidence. Leo
Cramer, the defendane in this case
is charged with receiving a deposit
of something like forty dollars in
the Idaho State bank of Haley on
August 81, 1910, the day before the
doors of the bank were closed, when
he knew the insolvent condition of
the bank, with fraudulent intent.
The prosecution have introduced
evidence tending to show that the
bank was insolvent on the date
mentioned, that the defendant and
other bank officers had borrowed
from the institution without Sc
curity. on their individual notes or
notes of the two corporations which
they controlled, sum of money
approximating S25O,OOO, an amount
several times the capital stock of
the bank, and that the reports of
the bank to the State Bank Com
missioner were falsified, and that
the amounts thus falsely added to
the reports were represented, in
part at least, by the unsecured
notes given to the bank by the de-
fendant and other officials. While
the evidence tended to show that
one of thee bank officials, Mr..
Pummer, had paid all or part of
his note to the bank, that on the
day of the failure there remained
unpaid of these unsecured notes
of thc officials, a SUM ranging from.
slSC. 600 to 100000.
As noticed in last weeks issue,
the prosecution scored a point,
when, after listening to arguments
hv the leading attorneys on both
sides, Judge Walters decided to
allow the introduction of eVidenceI
showing the Justification Of the
banks reports to the State Bank
Commissioner. The object of the
~ osecution in presenting this evil
dence was to show that the bank
officials had full knowledge of the
lnsclvent condition of the bank
pi ior to the failure.
On the afternoon of the goth, n.
N Ruick of Boise, made the open
ing presentation of the defense tol
the jury. The line Of defense as
outlined by Mr.. Ruick. is that the
bank was not insolvent on August
81. 1910. but that there were some
s63. 900 of assets on hand
over and above all liabilities; that
the State Bank Commissioner was
IN HALEY on August 3lst and IN !
consultation with the bank officials /
that deal was on for the sale o1
The entire interests of the bank, /
which if consumated. would have
protected every depositer to the
last dollar: that he doors of the
bank were opened for business on
the last day of August with the ap-
proval of the commissioner; and
that the deposits of that day were
kept separate and not entered on
/, he books of the bank.
The first witness for the defense
was VIM. G. Cruise, who was the
state Bank Commissioner at the
time of the failure. He had hardly
begun to4 give his testimony
when there occurred a sharp legal
battle regarding the admission OF
evidence. Mr.. Ruick here made
enc oC the mastery arguments OF
the trial. rivaling those Of Judge
william King for the prosecution
The week before. He called the at
fentRn of the court to the differ
enee between the Idaho statute
uIner which iDs prosecution isI
uade. and the statutes Of other
states. He claimed that the Idaho
statute makes the intent of fraud
the main factor of the crime and
bat the evidence desired is admis-
ible because it refutes the theory
Of fraudulent intent on the part
of the bank officials Judge King
advanced the arguments Of the
prosecution. After a statement OF
lis position. Judge Walters reserv-
ed his decision of the legal point
in dispute till the following morn
ing.
This morning on the convening of
court. Judge Walters rendered his
decision with elaborate reasons sus-
tanning the motion of the prose-