The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-12-30
Commonwealth Attorney Is
Doubtful OF Ability to
Convict Under Law
LAWYERS ADVISE TO
PLEAD mot GUILTY"
Judge Skeen's immunity I'M
mersion to Vote Buyers
Proves An Avenue
of Escape

tspeciat to The Richmond virgtnian.)
BRISTOL. VA. Dec. 2s.--The one
thousand or more alleged vote sellers
In Lee county. Va. will stand trial
for selling their votes. Tho major
ity of them will plead not guilty.
despite the disclosures which the Of
iceh olders and campaign managers
made after taking Judge skeen's I'M
,munity path
They will depend upon legal
fschnicality to save them Common
xeslth's Attorney NJ. G. Ely stated to-
night that he had talked to many
Of them, and that they had all do
cfarad thair Arm intention to stand
trial. Lawyers at Jonesville are ad-
vising them that they cannot be CON
v1cted because Judge Skeen has
promised immunity to the vote buy
ers who arc the only witnesses
: against the vote sellers.
Camn0t Grant Immunity.
The vote sellers ara nearly every
one indicted under the genersi hrib-
cry statute. This was done in or
der that conviction would mean per-
petual ACKNOWLEDGMENT. 1t is claim
ed by the lawyers that this law il
such that under IT Judge Skeen can
not grant immunity TO the hribe CIV
er and convict the bribe taker. and
that the bribe givers win incrir1inate
themselves by terrifying at the trial
It n even said that the bribe givers
are being advised not to testify, on
the ground that they would be In
eliminated beyond the power OF tho
court to grant them Immunity. The
law prescribea perpetual d,xfran-
cf1iacrianf Tor both the bribe gtver
and the hrihe taker.
~ talked today eto two or three
men from the BIackwater dtstrsct."
said Attorney Ely. I'm that district
son,e twenty-five or thirty men were
indicted for selling their votes ]
learned that those who have not
fled the county Will not take adEan-
taxe of Judge Skeen's Inducements
FOR them to confess. but viii stand
trial
Conviction is Doubtful.
When pressed for an answer as %
whether in his Judgment the vote
sellers could be convicted under the
circumstances. with only one witness
against each man. he being the per
SON who bought hts vote. Common
wealths. Attorney Ely admitted that
he did NOT think they could
Fl. stated that he had talked to
many other lawyers who concorrea III
this opinion and upon advice OK coun-
xeI the vote-.ellers Including both
+hose who have not been induced. Will
those who have been induced. VIII
face trial. .
Judge Skeen has intimated that II
viii 90 hard with the guilty men who
do not confess
Commonwealth Attorney Ely says
that another question has been raised.
Claim Transaction Legitimate.
The vote sellers say they took the
money given them by the politicians
for legtmate election expenses ana
/. u.ed II for such They stoutly deny
that the cash was the consideration
for their vote. Others laid OF from
work and took II as 'pay for their
DAYS wages" while others simply solo
their influence with no mention OF
their individual vote.
When II was discovered that very
large number of voters had beer
bought as SO many cattle. Judge Skeen
convened the grand jury in order to
rive the guilty men chance TO con
Tasx Of their own motion. He VIII
reconyene the Same grand jury In
February and those who have not en-
tered pleas OF guilty by that time will
bc indicted. The grand Jury will then
70 to the bottom OF the vote-buyine
scandaI. which has been going on II
Lee county.
In accordance with his prediction
warning Judge Skeen is preparing &c
begin an investigation In Dickinson
county. where conditions are said e
be even worse than Lee. He will con
yene court in Wise county Monday
but II IL understood that little can hs
done In that county.