The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1920-12-16
stage TO SURRENDER
AND TAKE TEN YEARS
FOR KIDNAPPING BABY
Askren and Girls Lawyers
Put Deal Thru; Shick-
land Protests

Lawyers for Miss Betty Braincrd
and Prosecuting Attorney William
ID. Aslren, OF Pierce county. have
compromised. according TO state-
ment given out here last evening By
Captain OF Detectives John S. Stricks
Land. In which he said he was clear
Ing his own skirts"
George stagg is 10 be surrrndereds
will plead guilty and take a minimum
sentence of ten years In the peniten~
tiary for the kidnapping Of his baby
boy, Bobby stagg. Miss Brainerd is Ia
be released and the charge Of kid
naping against her dismissed, Stric1Es
land said
STRICKLAND WOULDN'T BE
PARTY TO AGREEMENT
Il told Prosecutor Askrcn that 4
wouldn't be a party TO any SUCH
agreement said Strickland "and
won't / think Betty Brainerd
should be prosecuted. told Asl<rcn
was going to get in the clear. I told
him II kept my mouth shut now
I'd be explaining in vain for The
next ten years"
stagg has already been informed
by telegraph that n compromiso hna
been effected and is en- route to n
coma now, Strickland said As1<reu
told him. 1t win take him seven
days to reach Tacoma from his ht4
ing place. IT is said
Strickland came TO Seattle 0n sth1
s o'clock interurban train to fnfon4p
Deputy Sheriff Herbert Beehe here
OF the 1gentIrmcn's agreement ~
said. and advise the deputy. who ho1
been working jointly with him o.
the case, that further efforts TO -
cate and arrest stagg are useless.
ASKREN CALLS STRICKLAND
INTO HIS OFFICE
"Askren called me up n ~
Wednesday morning. Strickland
said, "and said he wanted TO -
me at his office m the courtlSousa
about the Brainerd case. got thefo
at 10 o'clock. We went into ~
private office and sat down
HE said Attorney Scott HendeN
son. counsel for Miss Braincrd. had
4
himself into custody and plead
guilty II the case against Betty WI
dismissed.
II thought he wanted my opinion
about the proposition. 50 l told him
was opposed TO it l argued with
him for two hours. / reminded him
that he had told me repeatedly that
the case against Miss Brainerd waa
air tight
II told him sooner or later W
would get StagH. and that i thought
as Stage, II not more so. because
she had no interest in the baby
while Stagg was the baby's father.
THOUGHT CASE OUGHT
TO GO TO JURY
II said ! thought she should -
punished just the same as she would
be II she had no money behind her;
and told him wouldn't be party
but would insist that Betty he put
to trial and let the jury decide
whether she was guilty or not
"Asixren told me he thought my
Judgment was wrong. He then in
formed me that he wasn't asking my
advice in the matter. but that 1t was
all settled.
'He told me. as a matter OF fact
that the proposition had been pu
thru several days ago and said hs
was just notifying me to that effect
81 said / was afraid OF the conse
quences of any deal other than faia
and square one. Such a deal as that
l told him. would reflect on our integ
rity, owing to the fact that every
body knew Betty had so much money
at her demand and such influential
| friends | told him. moreover. that l
considered II our duty to put the cass
up to jury. and thought we should
put up good fight.
ALL SETTLED BY
AGREEMENT WITH HENDERSON
HE waved all my suggestions
aside and told me there was no uss
talking about ii. because II was an
settled. he had agreed with Hender
son that Stagg should be surrendered
to custody. should plead guilty and
be given the minimum sentence OF 10
years, and that the case against Beb
| ty would be dismissed.
81 told him ! didn't consider II just
to me and Herbert Beebe: ] didnv
think he was giving us a square deal
said II he knew where Stagg was
Beebe and l were entitled TO the in
| formation, so we could place Stags
under arrest. and when we had stays
and Betty both In custody he could
do as he saw fit.
-Askren said he couldn't do that
his agreement with Henderson waA
that they were to bring Stagg "a
Tacoma. A telegram had already
been sent to Stagg, he said.
II protested that Scott Henderson,
was not a friend of his, and was
only using him 10 gain his own
ends. I said. Billy. your friends viii
come to you and you viii try to en-
plain TO them about it. and theyT
go to their friends and say. "What
! do you suppose this fellow Askren 4
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