The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-06-26
TRIAL OF SOLDIERS
 PROBABLY WILL BE HELD IN LATE. JULY
Judge Wilkinson, Special Prosecutor, Indicates He Has New Evidence, But
 Won't Show Hand
ny FIRED II. GoRMLEY Montgomery Bureau, The AEe-Hereid R9t-2 Flrat National Bank Building

Montgomery, June 2b.--( (speclal,) )--- Sergeant Robert J, Lancaster and eight other members of the Tusea' ioosa company of the Alabama natio' nal guard. charged with thelynching of WHl Baird. coal miner, who was taken from the Walker county jaii and shot to death by a masked mob In the early morning of January 13. will be placed on trial in the cif- cult court of Marion county at Hani.i- ton the latter part of July, according to present plans.
 It became known Saturday that the first cases are scheduled to be called July % and that the trials will be i continued until the nine cases have
 been disposed of. Since the supreme court held that the cases must be tried in Marion county, attorneys for
 the soldiers have been urging ths the trials be held, but because of the trial of other cases in the judical circuit in which Marion Is located 1t has not been possible to call the cases before July 25.
 Sergeant Lancaster probably will be the first defendant to face a jury. He was the first defendant to be call- | ed Into court soon after the indlct- ments were returned in January ant the jury was unable to reach an agreement. the case resulting in a mistrlal after the jury had delibe- rated from Saturday night until Mon day.
 State Has New Evidence l Judge Horace c. Wilkinson, special prosecutor for the state. has indicated that the state will have new evidence to offer when the trials are started, but has declined to show his hand, His star witness is expected to be Leslie West. the taNicab driver of Townley, who claims to have been member of the party which went to the county jail at Jasper, removed Baird from the prison and shot htih | to death beside the road leading | from Jasper to Townley. In his tes~ timony at the previous trial of La caster, West claimed he took no part in the lynching, that he merely drove the party to Jasper In his auto mobile and that he did not know the purpose when the party started from 1 Townley.
 The defense pleaded an alibi at tho Lancaster trial, contending that the defendant was asleep in his bunk at the military barracks at the time Baird was 1ynched and that he had nothing to do with the commission of the crime This plea is also ex- pected to be made in the trial of the other soldiers.
 In Bessemcr Jail
 Since the trial of Lancaster and the fight of the state to return the cases for trial in the Walker cir cult court. from which they wers taken on change of venue, Lsn- caster and his associates have been held in the Jefferson county jail al Bessemer. They were first confined in the Birmingham jail after the trial, but were transferred to beS- semmer on orders of the state pris- on inspection department, because of the condition of the jail at BIT mngha m.
 The same attorneys will be lined up for the defendants during tEe trials as were lined up in the cases soon after the indictments were re- turned Judge Horace C, Wilkinson will be chief prosecuting attorney and will have as his associates J. M. Pennington, circuit solicitor, ana WIG. Davis special counsel employed bv representatives of the Baird family
 Attorneys who will represent the soldiers are Senator A. H. Carmi ! chael of Tuscumbia: Judge Bernai Harwood, Manley Foster, Fleetwooa Rice. John Mcqueen and MT. findiey of Tuscaloosa Lecil Gray or Jasper. and Ernest B. and kell V. F1te or Hamilton.