The producers news. [volume] (Plentywood, Mont.) 1918-1937, 1919-08-08
VALLEY COUNTY GRAND
JURY URGES CUSTER
PROCEEDINGS
CONTINUED from Page One,

@Aom rage OueJ
$3.50, employ an engineer to in
seougate the reason for the collec
Iion OF the said water and do What
ever is necessary to renair tbe dt.fac.
tive condition. 49,,
rom an examination of the vari
gus oiaces OF Valley county, the Crane
ouly nnds 1T necessary to make par.
1ieuiar mention of the Office of the
sherin and the manner in which it Is
conducted. The Grand jury believes
IiaaC the present incumbent of the
ounce OF sheriff is an efficient office,
Iof SAID county in that he is willing
70 serve the best interests of the
SAID county and is industrious and
an'ellgent. The Grand Jury, howev-
81, must take exception to the man.
neT IN which visitors are permitted in
jan ana are allowed to talk and visit
win the prisoners there.o. They
would recommend that the sheriff
adopt rule prohibiting all persons
from entering cells of prisoners, ex-
cept attorneys and doctors, AMI that
Ia the event relatives # prisoners
WISH TO talk to them, they should
carry on Such conversat on in the of
nee Oh the Jail rather than in calls Of
the prisoners. The Grand Jury also
Ihds that the sheriff has been col
Letting fees frora Jal" county for
Wnth the law gives no authority.
we fnc that this was Tue to a ms
take on the part of the sheriff, and
further, because his predecessor in
once had been collecting fees in the
same manner and for the same ser.
vices. The law provides:
while in the discharge of his
duties, both civil and criminal, ex-
cept as herein provided, the sheriff
snail receive ten cents per mile for
each and every mile travelled. The
county shall not be liable for, nor
shall he board of cour ty commits
sioIers lay, any claim OF lie sheriff
or otiicl olhcers, for team or horse
Lire, CT sny other expe.s-s lncar.a
In travel or for subsistence in cases
where mileage is allowed under this
section; the fees for mileage named
In this section being in full for all
such travelling expenses for both
civil and criminal work" Section
1927 Pol Code.
We find that the sheriff in most
instances does not charge mileage
when he is on the discharge of his
duties In criminal matters, but in
stead Of mileage he charges automo-
bile hire and personal expenses,
which in some instances have amount
ed to several hundred dollars per
month. In some instances we have
found that the sheriff has charged
both mileage and automobile ex-
penses. .This, in the mind of the
jury, is serious matter, and has
been regularly permitted by the
county auditor and the board of coun-
ty commissioners without any inves-
tlgation whatever, and without any
attempt to explain to the sheriff that
the expenses he charged against the
county were illegal. They recon-
mend that the county commissioners
in connection with the county at
torney advise the sheriff definitely
and fully as to the duties of this
office and the fees to be charged in
connection with such duties.
6. The Grand Jury IN Investigate
ing the various charges made upon
the county for expenses incurred,
find a promiscuous and xxesavagant
number of charges rendered against
the county aand ordered paid by the
county commissioners and county |
auditor, for automobile hire by the
sheriff's Office, by the members of |
the county commissioners, and by the
auditor. The county auditor had no
right or authority whatsoever to hire
an automobile in the instances in |
which he did hire the sane, for and
on behalf of the county and we are
satisfied that the county commission
ers have fagrantly overstepped the
bounds of their authority to employ
automobiles and charge the expense
to the county. The expenses so
charged against the county, ard paid
bv it, for automobile hire during the
!, ear 1919 have am,unit' 10 more
than four hundred dollars in one
month. This is only one instance
which we cite, and records of the said
county show numerous such instances
for a number of years last past.
d. WIFI IGlCICuCC W GIAS OllIC0 Ol
county commissioners we have found
so much of their conduct which is
illegal and willful on
their part, that we thought it abso-
Iutely necessary to present charges
against them and bring them to trial
in custer proceedings. The evidence
upon these charges win be produced
at the trial and for that reason we
do not deem it proper to comment
upon it in this report.
8. The Grand Jury further exam
med the Office of the county auditor,
Fl. G. Wolking, the present incum-
bent, whom the jury found to be very
to deal with. In the
first Dlace he refused to testify be- {
fore the grand jury under oath re-
parding his conduct and the discharge
IF his duties in Valley county and ,
agree that his testimony should be
voluntary, notwithstanding the fact
hat he receives a monthly salary
ron the tapayerxs of said county,
Tor the discharge of his duties. anG I
the fact that it me- |
,essarily is a great expense to call