The Devils Lake world and inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1915-1920, 1918-04-10
MERR|Ck WINS
final ROUND

Judge KneeshaW has made an order
setting aside the verdict of the jury in
the case of B. c. johnson VS.. Fred e.
Merrick which was tried here to a jury
last November. This means the set
ting aside Of the judgement that John
son obtained last fall and entering a
judgment in favor of Merrick for the
dismissal of the action and for costs
in his favor and such new judgment
was entered in the clerks Office on
Thursday last week.
The litigation between johnson and
Merrick has been somewhat long
drawn out. johnson had been a ten
ant of Merrick on some land out near
Dry Lake. In the spring of 1915 Mer-
rick brought an action to put Johnson
off the place and to have all the crops
of 1914 .decreed to belong to Merrick
because of debts that were owing from
johnson to Merrick. Judge BUTTE de-
cided that case in favor of Mr.. Mer-
rick and johnson was ousted from the
farm and the judgment held that
johnson was entitled to no part of the
crop of 1914 but that in fact he was
indebted to MI. Merrick over and
above the amount Of the crop.
MI. Merrick lives at Medford, Ore
gon. Immediately after the trial of
this first case in 1915 Nh. johnson had
a summons served On Mr.. Merrick in
a new action. Mr.. Merrick's attor-
neys moved to quash the summons on
the ground that MI. Merrick was inn
mune from service Of process while in
the state of North Dakota attending
the trial of another lawsuit and Judge
Buttz made an order quashing the ser
vice of that summons. In the fall Of
1916 MI. Merrick came to Devils Lake
on some business not connected with
any court business and MI. johnson
again served him with and
the case was set for trial in the March
term, 1917. :
In this new action MI. johnson sued
Mr.. Merrick for his share of the crop
of 1914, the same crop that Judge
Buttz had already held in his judg-
ment in 1915 belonged to MI. Merrick,
and that Nh. Johnson had no interest
in, and Mr.: Merrick set up a defense
that the matter had already been de-
cided in the previous law suit and that
Mr.. johnson couldn't sue again for
the crop in a new law suit.
MI. johnson requested that Judge
Buttz call in some outside judge to try
the case and Judge Leighton of Minot
was called to Devils Lake to try the
same in the summer of 1917. Mr..
Merrick contended that it was a court
case triable to the court without a
jury and Mr.. johnson contended it was
a jury case and Judge Leighton held
it was a jury case and as there was no
jury then present the case had to be
continued over until fall and Nh. Mer-
rick was again obliged to make a trip
from Oregon for the trial in the fall
of 1917. At the trial in the fall OF
1917 Judge Kneeshaw was called in to
try the case and tried it to a jury
and the jury returned a verdict IN Ia
vor of MI. johnson for 1884. MI. Mer-
rick then moved to set aside the yer.
dict because of the fact that the case
decided by Judge Buttz in 1915 was q
decision of the same thing; involving
the same matter and could not be
again adjudicated, and further be.
cause the evidence showed by the un
disputed evidence that Mr. johnson
owed Mr.. Merrick more than his share
of the crop and consequently had moth.
ing coming and Judge Kneeshaw ha.
now held with Mr.. Merrick on thai
point and has granted Mr.. Merricl
Judgment against MI johnson.