The Julesburg grit-advocate., 1921-12-01

ed with first degree murder for kill
ing Ralph Rozell, former Julesburg
business man here, Wednesday, July
18th, began in district court here
Monday, November 2Sth, before Judge
L. C. Stephenson of Fort Morgan,
senior Judge of the Thirteenth Judi
cial District. Baker shot and killed
Rozell in the law offices of Robson
& Hendricks, in the Citizens National
Bank building, firing five shots into
Rnzell's body, death resulting almost
instantaneously. Since the day Of the
shooting Baker has been held in the
county jails of Sedgwick and Morgan
counties. The date first set for the
trial was Tuesday, October 25th, but
was postponed until Monday, Novem-
ber 2Sth.
The day following the murder Bak-
er made a statement to the Grit-Ad-
vocate in which he said that he killed
Rozell in order to protect his wife and
family, he alleging that Rozell, in
company with a woman, called at
the Baker home in the early morning
the Sunday previous and tried to in
duce Mrs. Baker to join them in par
ty. Baker stated that he got the
number of the car as it went out Of
the yard, and later identified the car
as Mr.. Rozell's.
A petit jury of eighty men was
summoned for this session of court.
All of Monday and Tuesday morning
was taken up in examining jurors, a
large number of the venire being call
ed before a jury to try the case was
finally accepted. Following is the list
of the Jurors who comprise the jury
in the murder trial. all of them be-
ing farmers:
Emery Hodges John Wright, Jr.
Nj. C. Peterson Bert Mccoy
Albert Hinck Arthur Almstead
Godfrey Bentson Ira c. Mast
Fred Padgett Walter Eckman
G. C. Benson J. M. Thompson
After the noon recess Tuesday at
ternoon commencing at two O'Clock,
Attorney Isaac Pelton, of Akron,
made the opening statement for the
People. This was followed by an
opening statement in behalf of the
defendant by Attorney George Hast
ings of Grant, Nebr. The prosecu-
tion is represented by District Attor-
ney Roy T. johnson of Sterling; de-
putty attorney w. H. Pound of this
city and Attorney Isaac Pelton OF
Akron. The defense is represented
by Attorney George Hastings of
Grant, Nebr., and Attorney H. A.
Dano of Ogallala, Nebr.
Since the jury was selected Tuesday
and the trial was commenced in ear
nest, large crowds have been in at
hoc
packed to capacity, there being stand
ing room only and a number have
been turned away. The court room
presents a dramatic scene, with the
wife and children of the defendant
occupying seats on the east side of
the room and the mother, father, sis
tiers, brother and other relatives seat
ed on the opposite side Of the room.
The defendant, whose appearance
showed the effects of confinement for
the past four months maintained a
stolid composure during the first day
of the trial while the jury was being
selected, but with the progress of the
ordeal Wednesday he is showing eff
fects of the strain. This court room
scene is one that will not soon be for
gotten by large number of those
VINO have witnessed it. Judge Steph-
enson is to be highly commended in
his actions of impressing on the large
audience the solemnness of the Oc
casion.
1t was plainly evident from the
opening statements of the attorney
for the prosecution, that the People
expected to prove that the killing of
Ralph Rozell was without warning
and that it was a case of premeditat-
ed murder in the first degree; that
Rozell was not at the Baker home
Sunday morning, July 10th and that
Rozell did not have an intimate ac-
ouaintance with Mrs. Baker; that
Baker and Rozell had engaged in a
dispute over the alleged Sunday morn
ing episode that Sunday afternoon on
the street and in the Rozell store and
that Rozell had gone to the Baker
house where the matter had been set
tied within a short time afterward
that the murder was unwarranted and
premeditated.
The defense in the opening state
ment to the jury intimated that they
would prove that car came to the
Baker home Sunday morning, July
10th; that an effort was made to in
duce Mrs. Baker to leave her home
and Join party; that woman in
the car told Mrs. Baker to come or
out, that Rozell was out there and
would give her money!" that Bakers
mother had been committed to hos
pital for the insane in 1874 and 1875