The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-10-07
NEGRO WAS LUCKY IN NOT HAVING LAWYER Interesting Case in Criminal Court Seen by Erskine
 Ramsay

Erskine Ramsay. the we'll known coal an unusual trial in the third division of the criminal court before Judge A. II. AL ston yesterday afternoon. MT. Ramsay was a member of the jury.
 One Gene Hodges, a negro. charged with assault and battery, was docketed for trial by Assistant Solicitor Walter W. Brewer.
 After the case had been called it devei- oped that the state had three witnesses. the defendant none and incidentally tho defendants lawyer was strangely miss ing.
 Where. Is yonr attorney2" questioned Judge Alston.
 'Jedge, I done paid him $5 to be hero and he shore ain't here"
 'Bailiff. go out and find the defendants attorney" said Judge Alston, and mean While we will proceed with the trial. If the attorney was paid fee of sl5 he should have been here"
 solicitor Brewer rapidly examined three witnesses, all of whom told the sa me story to the Jury. It was that Ellen Bogus, a negro woman, was struck over the head with pair of brass knuckles in the hands of the defendant last March. After the state had examined each witness the de- fendant was requested to cross-examine them.
 T aint got nothing to say to dem vim men, said Hodges; "I ain't got no law yer, so you might jest as we'll find mo guilty and save time"
 At this the Jury smiled. Well, Gene" said Solicitor Brower, do you want to get on the stand and tel, the Jury your side of tho case?' The negro readily assented to this and proceeded to tell that he visited Ellen Bogus on a Sunday night to get a shir. and that in a discussion which followed the woman called him a liar and he re- taliated by skipping her over.
 T shore hit 'er, but with ma fist" em- phaszed the negro.
 In his charge to the jury Judge Aston stated that the defendant denied the charge of hitting the negro woman with brass knuekles, but admitted striking her with his fist, which was an assault.
 Gentlemen, the defendant states that he struck the woman because she called him liar,' said the court. That in It. self cannot be considered Justification of his act. but 1t may be considered as miti- gation.
 Tho jury retired and returned in few minutes with n verdict that the defend- ant was guilty and assessing fine of S25. The negro was then generally cons graduated on his good fortune and As- sistant Solicitor Brewer said
 Gene, you're lucky ngger to be without a lawyer. If your lawyer hal been here we would have sent you on the roads for n year at least"
 Judge Aston uueried the negro as te the payment of his fine and it developed that Hodges was an employe of the Alabama Power company. Judge Aston instructed Bailiff Jack Brown to notify officials of the Alabama Power company of the plight of their employe
 This system of dispensing justice ap- peared highly interesting to Mr Ramsay. and after it was all over he smiled and quietly left the courtroom. In the 20 nin- utes that MT Ramsay sat in the jury box he had heard an inlling of the methods of some lawyers in securing fees from negro clients and incidentally he was . witness to a vigorous attempt on the part of Judge Aston and members of the so- licitors staff to clear the docket of con- gestion of minor cases.