New Iberia enterprise and independent observer., 1914-05-02
Kidnaper Walters Convicted.


been hearing the testimony IN the
ease cf William CantweH Wal
ters, charged with the kidnapping
of Robert Dunbar, Aug. 90, 1912
from the Swayze Lake neighbor'
hood. returned verdict of guilty
without capital punishment, at 5
o'clock this afternoon. thus
terminating for the moment al
least. one of the most celebrated
eases that has ever occupied the
attention of the st. Landry court
in the record of this historic
tribunal.
The report of the jury was
complied by a body Of men by
general concession one of the
most representative ever EN-
paneled in st. Landry parish. 1t
was composed Of George Lange,
bookkeeper, Eunice; A. P. Col
Inns, farmer, near Opelousas; Gas
ton Horaist, manager Of oil mill,
Sunset; Faustin Soileau, farmer,
Grarh Prairie; Robert McClel
land, farmer, near Opelousas; E.
Fisher, city contractor. Opelou
sas; George NJ. Caillouet, mer-
chant, Port Barre Frank Oliver,
farmer and merchant, Frozard
Hypo1ite Miller, merchant, Sun
set; Walter Sibile, farmer, Sun
set: Antoine Lamaury. manager
Farmers Union warehouse, Sun
set; j. B. Sihlle, farmer. Sun
set
The conviction of Walters
sounds the opening gun in legal
battle that may run through the
courts for years, and is certain to
develop much that is new in Lou
isiana jurisprudence.
Without friends, without mon
ey, old and uncouth and uncul'
tured, Providence has given Wal
ters three lawyers who believe in
his innocence. in Mississippi i'm
mediatelv after his arrest he en-
ployed Dale & Rawls Of Popular
Vile, turning over to them the
meager means he then possessed.
The money realized from the sale
Of this properey barely covered
the cost of the initial legal en-
gagements. But these lawyers
believed in his innocence and
stuck to him, expending mot only
their own time. but their own
money in developing his case
Forced to trial in country
where little credence was given
his protestations of innocence.
the district judge, through a
sense of fair play, named E. r
Dubuisson, one Of the leading
lawyers in South Louisiana, to
aid in the defense. Undertaking
the defense from a sense of duty,
Mr.. Dubuisson soon became inter-
ested in the remarkable chain OF
evidence developed in Mississippi
in substantiation Of the wander
ing tinker's story. He Joined
Dale & Rawls id giving the best
ef his talents in the trial. and now
that Walters has ben convicted,
he has Joined them in the promise
to exhaust every legal resources
and carry the case to the highest
court in the land to prevent Wal
tiers serving one day I'M the Pen
itentiary.
In Opelousas the verdict IS
hailed as a -yindication Of the
Dunbars and a substantiation OF
their Identification Of the child Of
mystery as Bobbie Dunbar. Most
of Opelousas has believed from
the outset that Mrs. Dunbar could
rot be mistaken. Events since
have strengthened that belief
But Opelousas is still puzzled
ever the mysteries Of the case,
mysteries which the trial only
served to deepen.
The jury filed in. Not one OF
the twelve looked toward the
prisoner. though he gazed at
them keenly. Sheriff Swords
took his place before the jury
box.
The jury was then asked to
communicate its verict to the
court through its foreman. Geo
M. Caillouet. Port Barre mer'
chant and the largest man, ply
sically, on the panel, arose and
pronounced the decree. "Guilty
without capital punishment"
Walters sat immovable and
outwardly Unconditional. Not
4a3;.x::!ss!Y;.s3(. 1!.v3ysN:s