Mexico Missouri message., 1916-06-01
Mr.. BALDRIDCE
CLEARED IN COURT
Henry Baldridge of Centralia Charg-
ed With Murder Is Acquitted
Killed DIR. j. Q. Cooper.
Henry Baldridge, former City

MdSTHdi VI ShIldlld5 was dSQuib'Ou
by a jury last Friday in the circuit
court at Fulton of the charge of muir
der in connection with the killing
of DR.. ]. @. Cooper
The jury deliberated IL hours. 1t
was said that the first ballot stood
to 8 in favor of acquittal and the
second z to in favor of accquittal.
About 100 witnesses were sum-
moned for the trial.
Arthur Bruton, for the defendant,
made the statement to the jury as
to what he expected to prove. "Dr.
Cooper was an itinerant physician,
sojourning a few years, at most, in
one place and then leaving because
his habit of drinking to excess made
it. necessary for him to leave for bus
mess reasons" SAID Mr.. Bruton.
He told that Cooper was power
full man physically and when drunk
was inclined to make trouble. "He
had no regard for law or law officials
and when drunk was in the habit of
resisting police officials" Mr. Bruton
declared.
His Office in Centralia was a
meeting place for the drinking ele-
ment from the time he located there
in August, 1915, until the day of
his death, and the longer he stayed
the more fragrant became his con-
duct. Men who are notorious as
gamblers in CentraIia frequented
Cooper's office, and we expect to
prove that gambling was conducted
there"
AS to Baldridge, Mr.. Bruton said
that he had been a police official in
Centralia at various times for IL or
IA years, and that at the time of the
killing he was doing night duty as
Marshal instead of day duty because
the merchants organization of the
town had requested the board of al
dermen to put him on the night job
Mr.. Bruton gave the defense's yer-
sion of the incidents leading up to
the killing and told that Cooper had
threatened in talks with others tc
give Baldridge a wooden overcoat'
if he ever interfered with his affairs
Thomas Vanlandingham of Cen
tralia testified that he had known
Cooper when both lived at Rowena
and also when Cooper had lived a.
Paris, and that Cooper had reputa
tion in both places for drinking.
There were a number of other!
who testified along the same line.
]. T. Ridgeway of Centralia, {
drug clerk, testified that Mrs. Ry
man, the dressmaker, said the da!
Cooper was shot, 81 did not sleep I
wink last night. That gang in DR.
Cooper's Office kept me awake al
night"
o. G. Wilson, Ridgeway's employ
er, told of hearing Mrs. Ryman sa.
the same day that she guessed sh
would get good nights sleep tina
night for the first time in severa
weeks.
Baldridge testified in his own be
half.
The defense recalled several viii
nesses after Baldridge left tn
stand, and then the State began it
rebuttal with the introduction G
evidence attacking the character G
the former Marshal. A majority G
the eight men, it is said, who test
fed that Baldridge's reputation fo
morality was bad admitted unde
cross examination that Baldridge ha
the opposition OF the negroes and tn
lawless element at election time an
that the Church people elected Ba
dridge," according so the gener'
opinion.
In cross examining the witness'
introduced in rebuttAr by the defen'