The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-05-05
Court Says That From
Language Used De-
fendant Could Not
Know What Charges to
Meet and Defend; Ac-
cusations Held Too
General.

"A FRS DOEA TOPHAM. better
NH known as "Belle London,D
IVH convicted in Judge r. C.. Loot
borrow s division of the Third
district court on charge of pander-
ing and sentenced to eighteen years In
the state prison, was given her free
dom In an opinion handed down yes
terday by the state supreme court. The
case is reversed and remanded to the
district court with Instructions to dis
charge the defendapt. The opinion
was unanimous, the three Judges com
prislng The higher court uniting iu the
belief that the provisions of the stat
ntc arc 100 general and that the in
formation in this particular case was
not sufficiently specific.
Basis of Charges.
Mrs. Topham was the proprietress of
the 'stockade,' the segregated dis
trict of Salt Lake City. She was ar
rested last fall while the municipal
campaign was at It's height aud the
social eviI' question was all issue.
The case was based on The alleged
forcbe detention in the stockade OF
Dogney Gray, 17~year-old girl. and
the evidence was of sensational char
acter.
Attorney e. A. Rogers, who conduct
ed the defense. reserved the exceptions
to rulings of the lower court, which
formed the basis of the anpeal while
Powers & Marioneaux argued the mo-
tion for new trial before Judge Loot
bourow and afterwards argued the
case IN the supreme court.
The law under which the defendant
was brought to trial provides that
Any person who shall, by promises,
threats, violence, or by any device or
scheme, cause, induce or persuade an
inmate of house of prostitution to
remain therein as such innate is
guilty of the crime of pandering.
The information alleged that the
defendant, "by promises and threats
.aused. induced and persuaded' fe
male and an inmate of house Of
PROSTITUTION in the stockade, to remain
here as such inmate.
Statute Is Too General.
The supreme court hold that such an
Information was defective. The infor-
nation charged the offense in the Ian
uage of the statute. The court held
hat an information in the language Of
he statute is sufficient when the stat
tie itself, in precise and definite terms,
rescribes and desgnates the acts OK
hiugs constituting the offense. But
hen tho offense is defined by the
atute in generic and general terms
nd language which embraces
ANY and divers things, then the in
in the language Of the stat
be is not sufficient. but the informa-
on should charge the particular thing
things and acts which are claimed
Ie defendant had committed.
These views are supported in the
,inion of the court by the citation OF
lmerous cases and quotations from
em. 1t is stated in tho opinion that
information which charges a person
at he did "by divers schemes aud
,vices'' induce an inmate to remain
a house Of prostitution, does not ap'
iso the defendant of the acts con-
ituting the Offense, nor of the partic-
ar circumstances necessary to con-
ltute complete o6ensei aud that
person, from such language, could
low what the state expected or IN
nded to prove. and hence the defend
t could not know what he was called
on to meet and defend.
The court refers to cnses and quotes
ffSaufixaund pa T1rn