Arizona republican., 1922-05-26
STATE BLOCKS ATTEMPT To
MAKE XII k[UX KHAN FACTOR
in JONES WHIPPING TRIAL
ku Klux Letter Accepted Responsibility for
Whipping of LeM School Teacher Is Ruled
Inadmissable By Judge Stanford; Court
Warns Against Demonstrations

Attemps to make the Ku KIux Khan
organization an important factor in
the trial of j. N. Waller and his SON
b. T. Waller, charged with aggra-
waited assault upon Rollin P. Jones
principal of the Lehi school, were
blocked by County Attorney r. e. T..
Shepherd and his assistant Joseph
2. Noble during the hearing OF the
case before Judge r. C. Stanford yes
| terday.
| Twice the attorneys for the defend
ants, M. W. Shelley and J. C. Niles.
laid careful foundation to show that
| members of the Ku Klux KIan were
responsible for the whipping admin
| istered to Principal Jones on the night
| of March 20, but their efforts to in
troduce the direct evidence into the
trial We're met by objections by the
! prosecution which were sustained by
| Judge Stanford.
through questioning from his at
| torneys j. n. Waller reviewed his
| efforts to bring about the conviction
| OF Jones on a charge of committing a
serious indignity against his daugl1-
| ter He recited how that case had
been brought into the justice court
! at Mesa where the charge was dis
| missed and his efforts to- have Jones
brought to trial again on similar
| charge.
| 1t was while he was waiting for
Jones to be brought into court on the
| second charge that two strangers
came to see him about the circurn-
stances connected with the case,
Waller told the court yesterday. He
| testifled the visit of the men was un-
| expected, that he had never seen
them before nor afterward and that
| their only business was TO get the
| side OF the story concerning Jones.
| Waller said one of the two men made
| the remark: Il didn't come because
| wanted to but because was sent"
Attorney Shelley asked the witness
| whether these two men indicated by
their remarks that they were men,
/ bers of the Ku Klux Klan but County
| Attorney Shepherd interposed an OBJ
| lection which was sustained by the
court on the ground that unless the
/ two strangers were brought into
! court their conversation could be
! considered only as hearsay.
X. X. x. Letter Not Admitted
A letter written to the editor of the
! Arizona Republican purporting to
/ bear the official seal of the Ku Kiux
| klan in which that organization as-
sumed full responsibility for the
| whipping administered to Jones was
also deemed inadmissable as evidence
| by Judge Stanford on the ground thai
| the document was of anonymous
| origin.
| The question OF who cut J. y.
| walters whisl<ers or were they cut
was given prime importance at the
| afternoon session of the trial. Jones
| had previously testified that he had
! seen j. n. Walters whiskers on the
night OF the whipping when a mask
had blown aside partly revealing the
| face of his assailant. Testifying in
his on behalf Waller declared his
! daughter-in-law, the wife of Philip
| Waller, had cut his whiskers on the
morning of Sunday, March 10. When
later recalled to the stand Waller said
| he was not certain it was his daugh-
ter-in-law who trimmed his beard
| on that day but was rather of the
| opinion ii was his daughter. Lois.
Lois was called to the stand and
testified she had done the cutting.
1t was the night of the following day
| that the assault upon Jones took
place.
Contradict State Testimony
Directly contradicting testimony
which had been offered by the state
on the opening day of the trial Waller
| declared that no cars had been
| driven to or from his home during the
| afternoon or evening Of March 20 and
also denied any knowledge of meet
| ings of men either on or near his
place as had been testified TO by Mrs
l. +. Lewis. He said that before the
night of the whipping his children
had given several Ice-cream parties
at his place and that numerous
| guests had been present at these af-
! fairs.
| Mrs. J. Y. Waller was the first
| to take the stand for the defense.
! She declared that on the night OF
night of March 20 her husband re-
| tired about 8 o'clock and was asleep
when she retired about an hour later.
This testimony was corroborated by
| Sam Waller son, who followed his
mother on the stand for the defense.
Indications point 10 another all day
session before the trial can be
! brought to a conclusion and placed
in the hands of the Jury. Many held
| their places in the crowded court
room yesterday throughout both the
morning and afternoon sessions. At
| several times during the presentation
of testimony spectators applauded
until Judge Stanford declared from
the bench that the oailiff would expei
from the courtroom anyone who in
dulged in similar demonstrations.