Evening capital news. (Boise, Idaho) 1901-1927, 1912-12-24

Attorney General McDougall closed
for the state. a. a. Fraser made the
final argument Cor a. r. Cru2en X.
,. sheridan, owner and publisher, ana
{. y. Broxon. managing editor, of the
Capltal News, the two other defend
ANS " no claim the constitutional right
to critclse supreme court decision,
left tnclr case with the court without
argument.
ras ing his respects to newspaper
ethics attorney General declared in
his argument: ),
~ nete seems to be peculiar news
paper etnics II we had brought in q
reporter 10 testify he would have as
sunlea all ~ the responsibility No re-
porter bGIns in the case, tine managing
tultor, VINO Is on a salary, takes ii up
on himself to assume all the RESPONSE
bility and follows out these ethics TO
defend lhe higher ups
The delicacy Of the issue they were
handling, the fact that the three JUS
tees sit on the case as accusers. jury
denied and acting themselves as jurors,
was cautioned by Attorney Fraser in
closing for Cruzen. He pointed out
that the court is looked upon by the
great masses of the people to rise
above newspaper reports and criti-
cisms, not to be swayed by bitterness
nor to be prejudiced, but TO be fair and
impartial.
Attorney Genera, Opens.
Attorney General McDougan opened
the argument for the prosecution I'M
mediately after court convened at 10
O'Clock this morning and Attorney Boz
gart, speaking in behalf of his clients
and for associate counsel, Van S. Has
brouck and John ]. Plowhead, an
nounced that defendants Sheridan and
Broxon would rest their case with the
court without argument.
Reviews Record of Case
Reviewing the record of the charges
preferred against the defendants and
particularly against Cruzen, Attorney
General McDougall said that the
.scandalous" matter published and re-
peated by the Capital News, referring
to the Roosevelt telegram and the edi-
torials that criticised the supreme
courts decision striking the Roosevelt
electors from the ballot proved the in
tent of the publication to attack the
court and impede its work. He dis
missed the defense of Messrs Sheridan
and Broxon with the remark quoted
above and confined his argument al
most exclusively to the defense offered
by Cruzen.
IF CruZen Is responsible for these
articles; If he controlled the policy of
the paper and dictated the articles, he
is as responsible as those who wrote
themb." declared the attorney general
The circulation of the Capital News
was referred to by the speaker 70 show
the extent OF territory the alleged
.scandalous articles" covered and the
number Of people they reached.
Would Also Find Cruzen Guilty.
IF the defendant Cruzen was being
tried before a jury charged with burg
larry there is no question but that the
jury would find him guilty. said the
attorney general during his argument.
For illustration had Cruzen burglar
lied tthe Capital News and was seen
coming and going into the building in
which It is located and had admitted
it, he would be found guilty. This
case is a question of fact. If the de-
fendant was before a jury charged with
burglary of course he would deny It,"
Reference was made to the promi-
nence of the men the state had sub
poenaed and the statement Cruzen had
made to them about controlling the
Capital News and its policy, by the
speak er who later argued that the mere
fact that Thompson, one of the wit
nesses, had told of calling on Cruzen
at the latters office to see If he could
not have the fight ON Charles d.
Storey, that the Capital News was
conducting, called off, and that during
the conference that followed Cruzen
called Broxon over the telephone to
the formers office was evidence that