Arizona republican., 1920-10-17
SUNDAY MORNING. OCTOBER II. 1920
Crimes lead into one another.
 Burke.
A ssratsaIe MIstsk.

From political point of view think that strategic error made yesterday when effort put forth to secure dismissal of the cases against Elmer coker. J. T. Murphy and Judge MCan. charged with the offenses of conspiracy and kd- naping These cases. by of the intimate connection of MT. coker with the land department which has become the overshadowing issue in the campaign. with the unidentified activities of Mir. Murphy in his relations with the department and with the position of Judge Mcan as a lessee of the state lands and active worker for the present land lease law linked inextricably with the land department campaign issue
 Situated these defendants and Messrs. simms. Ross and Attorney-Gene Jones. who the less defendants in the campaign. should desire the earliest fullest possible hearing of the charges if concerned in the success of the Democratic ticket. only in that way might the accusations be exploded if they ground less. But. as matters now stand. the preliminary animation having been waived. the defendants must lie under the charges until after the election.
 These defendants are charged. first. with spiracy corrupt. by bribery Edward o'Brien Mann a circulator of a referendum petition against the land lease bill and falling in that. they charged with Kidnapping Mir Mann while on his way to the office of the secretary of state the night of the last day for the filing of the petition
 It was known that County Attorney Laney was opposed to the prosecution and it was understood that he would move yesterday to dismiss the two complaints. His preliminary statement inter- esting and ingenious if quite ingenious.
 He said that he convinced. far ccrned the conspiracy charge that it would not vive a demurrer for the that the conspiracy. if any was to perform a vain and trivial act and to "obstruct the due administration of the law" alleged in the complaint since the Supreme court had held that a referendum could not be invoked against House Bil No. 60 it emergency measure. That by the way. Mir. Laney said the reason why he had told Mr. Mann soon after tho alleged Kidnapping. a year ago last June that hc was unwilling to proceed against the defendants. Yet. at that time the Supreme had not yet passed the handed down a decision on which 1t could be presumed that the referendum might not be invoked
 But, regardless of the character of the petition as worthless piece of paper or not. the question whether any action with respect to it, if it were document of value is still unsettled. notwithstand ing the decision of the Supreme court.
 A Missouri judge recently tried settle it by declaring that crime against worthless docu- mont is impossible. but the comment ensuing upon that decision almost solidly against his view. Tho facts in that were thus briefly in an editorial in The Republican soon thereafter
 The latest manifestation of this Missouri judicial tendency occurred Springfield last Tuesday, Sep tembcr .. where circuit judge sustained demurrer to indictment of Richard Mcculoch, president of United Railway Corporation of St. Louis. charg ing him with burglary in the second degree and lar ceny in connection with the theft certain referen- dun petitions two years ago
 The alleged facts that certain labor unions had invoked the referendum on proposition to ex- tend the franchise of the company. the night be- fore the of their filing safe in the headquarters of tho cgarmakers union blown and the peti- tons carried away. It charged that Me Culloch and another officer of the railway corpora ton had hired the commission of this crime Th' circuit judge held that the crime charged had no been committed. in asmuch as the petitions no property He added that the only crime committed was malicious destruction of property and that ha not been alleged. the defendant free
 We have the text of the decision so tha we do not know how he got around the fact that tn union headquarters were forciby entered and the saf wac blown open We suppose, if this decision stand it will henceforth be no crime to break into hous and blow open a safe if the burglars can establish that they found nothing in the latter worth carryin
 in the pending cases. if the defendants were as alleged in a conspiracy to bribe the prosecutin witness they believed that the referendum petition was a vital document Again if they other per sons. falling to the suppression of the docu nent in that way resorted to Kidnapping, suppos i'm the combined view Of Mir. Laney and the Spring field judge the Kidnapping would have been no crim for as things turned out there nothing for ther to gain thereby.
 We would not oppose the judgment of layma to that of gentlemen learned in the law But th' is not really the point anyhow; 1t is not questio whether the defendants in this case committed crime but whether they performed acts which that time they supposed to be criminal. That ,yhat inc jury already sitting in the land departme ,ssue of which these cases have become a part wi want to know
 And the public sitting jury, unlike the cou t,ry never prcsumes an accused person innoce unti his guilt has been established. That is wh ,s e were concerned in the success of the Dem .-..t. candidates for governor. secretary of sta ,,l attorney general we would much rather ha'
 . matter disrosed of before the election. unless ,e,-ss that the proof would sustain the charges.