The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1914-10-08
The Supreme Judicial Court.

The Supreme Judicial Court.
Associate Justice George E. Bird of Port
land, Presiding.
CRIMINAL DOCKET,
When The Journal went to press last weel
all the evidence was in in the case Of the State
VS.. Lewis Burgess of Burnham, indicted fol
murder. and H. C. Buzzell opened for the de-
fence, making strong plea for his Client He
claimed that the gun was discharged during
a scuffle and that Burgess was acting in self
defence Attorney General Scott Wilson for
the State believed the prisoner at the bar gull
ty of the offence with which he was charged
and reviewed the evidence in support of this
position. Judge Bird gave his charge to the
jury Thursday morning. He spoke of the va :
rious phases of homicide which were iustifiable
and lawful and of those which are unlawful.
In time of war it is lawful to kill the enemy in
self-defence. When attacked. it is lawful for
self preservation to kill; for the safety of So
ciety it is some times lawful to kill and there
is accidental killing when gross negligence is
not proven, when the act is not considered un-
lawful. He explained the difference between
murder and mansaughter. He said that in
the case before them the jury would not have
to decide the question to whether John
Romeo had been killed, nor whether it was the
respondent who did 1t. These questions had
not been contended but admitted by counsel.
He then defined malice aforethought expressed
or implied, and cited cases to illustrate it. He
instructed the jury that intoxication on the
part of the deceased, or the respondent. had
nothing to do with the matter to be decided
An intoxicated person is as liable as an unin-
toxicat ed one under the law. Only when the
intoxication becomes insanity does it affect a
case.
and about p. m. they returned a verdict of
guilty of manslaughter.
When County Attorney Littlefeld moved for
sentence Friday afternoon, H. c. buzzell.
council for Burgess, presented an earnest plea
for mercy, and the county attorney expressed
the desire that he should be punished for the
deed. In response to questions of the Judge
the prisoner said he was born in Augusta, SO
years ago. His mother died when he was four
years of age and his father was drowned
year later. He had been twice married. His
first wife was the mother of Mrs. Romeo, and
his second wife, who had left him, was
widow with six children, whom he was willing
to help support. His schooling covered a
period of two years and he could neither
write nor read writing, but could read a little
print" When asked why he did the deed, he
responded: Him coming to my house when l
was behaving myself at home" The Judge
imposed sentence of not more than two
wears nor less than one year in the State
Prison at Thomaston, and the prisoner was
pitiful in his expressions of gratitude for the
mercy shown. He was taken to Thomaston
last Saturday afternoon by Sheriff Cushman.
The next case taken up Thursday was State
vs. John Tweede of Thorndike. appealed from
the lower court on a search and seizure case.
The following jury was drawn: E. I. Bessey,
Knox; Ho ard r. Clements, Monroe; Wilson
A. Colson, Searsport; Charles U. Curtis. Sears
port; O. E. Dutton, Waldo; Wallace Edmunds,
Burnham; D. A. Greer, Belmont; Walter B.
Knight, Troy; Lemuel ]. Lord. Frankfort; F.
G. Norton, Palermo; Percy B. Redman, Bel
fast; foreman, E. A. Ware, Thorndike. The
search and seizure were made last July. Sheriff
Cushman was the first witness called. He
said that he was called to Thorndike by
plants and on searching the building owned
and occupied by John Tweedie he found in
bedroom chest in which were several bottles
of beer more in the bed and more in bags out
side of the building. He took samples of the
beer and sent them to Orono for analysis. the
report being that it contained more than per
cent of alcohol and was lager beer. Jos. N
Bartlett of the Maine Experiment Station
testified as to the percentage of alcohol in the
samples. "A. G. Beach. deputy sheriff. also
testified as to the search, he having accompan-
led Sheriff Cushman. James S. Hartman, who
appeared for TweedIe, placed him on the stand,
but he did not prove very good witness for
the defence He denied selling, but said he
had drank since he was fifteen years of age
and had large quantities of Uno and lager in
his possession. The case went to the jury
shortly before and after short delibera-
ton they returned verdict of guilty. Twee-
dies counsel filed a motion for arrest of judg-
ment. Motion overruled and exceptions filed
and allowed. The case goes to the Law Court,
with James W. Tweedie and Oscar ]. Farwell
as sureties in the sum of $500 each.
The next case before the court was that of
William Gordon, alias William Howard young
colored man of Hampden, indicted for the alb
duction on the 5th day of August of Mildred
Foster, aged 16 years, whom he took from her
home in Hampden to Monroe and kept her
there a week. The girl was at the time of the
alleged abduction an inmate of the Maine
Industrial School for Girls at Halowell. and
was out on probation. W, A. Cowan of Win
terport was appointed by the Court to defend
Gordon. Another indictment for statutory
offense was found against Gordon, the crime
having been committed against the same girl
on the tenth day of August. Gordon withdrew
the plea of not guilty he made at the trial in
the lower court and pleaded guilty to the stat
utory offence. and the charge of abduction was
dropped, He was sentenced to a fine of 500
and 60 Gays in Jail, and was committed.
The case of Charles L. Fogg of Monroe in