Durant weekly news. (Durant, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 190?-1944, 1922-03-10

Gentlemen. there are special things
in addition to your regular work of
investigating violations of the law
concerning all crimes, and I submit
the whole statutes for your investi.
cation of criminal offenses. do moi
limit you to any special matter what
ever, but the law does require that
| call to your attention certain mat
ters.
1t is your duty to investigate all
matters pertaining to any prisoner
who may he in Jail. and who has not
been informed against or no indict-
ment is pending against him. 1t is
your duty to investigate the manage
ment of the public institutions. tho
Jail and the court house and sec that
they are kept. and that you make a
report of your investigation at the
conclusion of your work, and in that
connection. | am going to tell YOU
that ] am not going to discharge YOU
until you have completed your work
and ask to be discharged. have no
desire TO move to Chicago.
Further, gentlemen. it is your duty
and the duty of mine to call your at
tention to it, that you investigate the
serious and gross misconduct in of
flee of all public officials without
regard to who they are or what their
business it. Among that list will be
myself, and ! direct you to make a
special investigation touching my
conduct as your official in this coun-
ty. Among that list are the county Of
ficials of this county. call your spec
ial attention to that, that you inves-
tigate the conduct of the officials of
this county. don't know which one
is called the top, nor which one is
called the bottom, but you may COM
mence with Ruel Taylor and 90 the
other way, or commence with your big
democratic constable and go the other
way. 1 call your special attention in
that connection, to the city officials.
that you may investigate them, COM
mencing with the mayor and going
down.
Gentlemen, it is violation of the
law of this state, for any public Of
ficiai to collect money that is due to
be collected by virtue of their offices
and use that money for their own
benefit. Among that list would be
the district judge, who performs mar
riage ceremonies and collects fee
therefore, and keeps it. Those are
the only fees that come to my hand,
fees; they belong to the
county. The county Judge, and the
fees that he collects. the county treas
urer, the justice of the peace, like
my friend that sits in front of this
Judge Archibald, he should
collect fees that belong to the county,
and turn them in. IF he has done
that and not turned them in, you
should bill him, like the balance of us.
Among that list is the mayor of the
city. and the mayor of other towns of
this county or the police Judges Of
towns of the county. 1t is their duty
TO collect fees of their office from
fines and things of that kind. If any
Df these officials have collected fees
and haven't made their monthly re-
Dort a. the statute requires and turn
ID these fees into the treasury where
hey belong, gentlemen, you should in
:cSticate that. and if you find hat to
% true. bill them. without regard to
who they are.
1t is also a violation Of the law for !
public officials to mutilate any record /,
which it may be their duty to keep, /,
md that they mutilate it for the pur-
,oSe of destroying it to keep the pub
ic from knowing what the record |
'ontains. call your attention to
hat especially.
1t is violation Of the law for any |
me to refuse to aid an officer or CON |
eal crime and keep it from the Off
crs. | call this to your attention for
he reason Of letter | have in my |
pocket, written to me with no name
igncd TO it. 1t appears that he
lnows of violations of the law and has
lever divulged it to the officers, and
low wants me to attend to it, and
lon't know who he is. don't know
What he is, nor what he belongs to.
ie may be in this court room, and if
lie is, | am going to tell you that he
5 a coward. A man who knows of
'iolations of law and writes to the Of
icials and complains of these things,
IS a member of secret organization,
II organizations of secret, ~ not
are which, and he hasn't the man.
Iood to come out and tell officers who
e is and what he knows, he is cow
rd. want you to investigate things
f that kind. 1t is violation of the
aw for a man to attempt to intimi-
ate an official from doing his duty.
don't know whether that's an in
imidation or not. can't tell you
hat it is, but for a man to attempt
o intimidate an officer, is violation
f the law. l want you to investigate
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