Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1916-04-08
Report Of Grand Jury.


HANBERY,
Of the Christian County Circuit Court
The Grand Jury selected for the
February term, begs leave TO submit
the following report;
True to the statement Of the Court
in his charge, we find that wave of
crime, deluging in its volume, has
swept over all sections of our county
during the last twelve months, due as
we believe, to several reasons,
amongst which, we would suggest
the following:
We verify believe that whiskey and
revolvers are the cause of at least 80
per cent of the crimes which we have
investigated, and it has been our pol
icy to direct our attention largely to
the uncovering and indicting of the
skulking "bootlegger" and the cow
ardly pistol toter."
Idleness and laziness, with dispo-
sition to live upon the wages of 9TH
erS, have certainly their part in this
and where the evidence has been suffi-
cient, we have found true bills. In
our judgment, great part of crimes
may be laid at the door of some of
our best citizens who by their indis-
position to prosecute misdemeanors
condone these minor offenses, there
by giving to the miscreant, license to
perpetrate larger crimes and felonies.
We have even found one or two
cases where the person who was dam
aged by robbery or theft has helped 10
defeat the ends Of justice by compro-
missing with the criminal by way of
settlement, surely, we believe, not
realizing the gravity of their offense.
We have found that this leniency'and
indisposition on the part of some of
our best citizens, has been a heavy
weight about our necks, and we be-
lieve of preceding Grand Juries, and
feel that the time has come in the
history of our county,. when every
citizen should see to it that no lawless
act escapes punishment by due pro-
cess of law, to the end that our coun-
ty become in truth worthy of the
great name which she bears,
We have, in vely large majority
of the cases where defendant either
waived examining trial, or was held
over by other courts to the Grand
Jury, found true bills" but there
are two cases, viz, those Of Jared
Renshaw and Mack Radford, which
we have seen fit to dismiss, and feel
that the Court should know the reason
for such d step. II was not within our
province to hold trial Of any case, nor
did we attempt to get evidence SHOVEL
ing innocence of any defendant. |
However, in these two cases, the wit
nesses recognized by the commdbe
wealth to appear against said defend
ants, gave evidence Of the innocence
of both defendants so conclusive and
convincing that we deemed # an in
justice to them, and a useless expense
and worry to the commonwealth to !
find a true bill against them. How
ever, there is no denial of the fact
that a great and heinous crime has
been committed against the persons
of Stoney Grayand wife, and the dig
nifty of the commonwealth. We,
return the evidence secured
IN these cases to the court and defer
his matter to the next Grand Jury
with the recommendation that they
summon some members of this Jury
necessary, to help them bring to I
ustice the perpetrators OF this crime.
In accordance with the instructions {
If the Court, we have used the utmost {
liligence in trying to ferret out the
ource of what are known as might J
ider letters" For lack of evidence .
we have failed, finding only one let $
err which had been passed through
ny postoffice. We have evidence of L
ther offenses of a similar nature, but c
eel convinced that they are covardIy g
cts of malicious persons who adopt
his mode of retaliation for minor in II
ury. We do not in the least attempt 0
D minimize the dastardliness of this II
ffense, but rather recommend that p
'ersons so offended report at once to I
that they may have some s
me of evidence upon which the next c
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