Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1926-09-23
SENTENCES melted OUT AND JURY
DISMISSED ON WEDNESDAY AT
KENNEBEC co. SUPERIOR COURT

which MERCER was taken to the Au-
gusta lookup and when they got to
Augusta the interior Of the closed
car had smelled strongly of alcohol.
Officer Harry Miller of the Angus
ia force, who had been on duty at
the station when the respondent was
brought in, declared that Mercier
was intoxicated. He was unsteady on
his feet and was in a somewhat stu
pid condition.
Mr.. Robbins was then called to
the stand. He was abed at the time
of the accident, was awakened by
the crash and went out as soon as
he was dressed. After looking
around he had called in the State
police. He had seen MERCER and
thought he was drunk. There were
two men on the rear seat he testified
who were in drunken sleep.
A bottle Of alcohol was produced
by the county attorney and ques-
tons put to Mr.. Robbins brought out
that the bottle was found about the
last OF July near a tree within a.
lew feet of the place where the
chevrolet had stopped. He testified
on direct examination that it was
"a fact" that the bottle had been
IN the MERCER car and had been
hidden behind the tree, but on cross
examination he admitted that he
did not know that the bottle had
been In the car or that it had been
hidden there by anyone in the Mer-
cler car, declaring that his evidence
was "ciroumstantial." When press
ed to give his idea of circumstantial
evidence admitted that in this case
the circumstantial evidence was his
own idea of the case.
State Highway Police officer Mall
COIN O'Brien who had arrested Mer-
cier on orders Of Lieut.. Young stat
ed that MERCER was under the in
fiuence of liquor. On cross examina-
ton it developed that after MERCER
had been placed in the lookup. he
had promptly gone to sleep in one of
the cells and that when the officers
endeaVored to wake him up a short
time afterward they were unable to
Go so. He was asked on cross ex-
| animation as to the difference in the
| odor which various beverages would
| leave on the breath and after telling
| that he could distinguish beer from
| other liquors because the odor of
| beer was more sour. He was asked
where he became familiar with the
odor Of alcohol. To this he answer.
! ed, 'by teaching chemistry, two
years in summer baseball in Massa-
! chusetts, and by my work for several
years on the State Highway force"
! Mereier was first called to the
! stand in defense. He testified that
he and his family with some friends
had been passing the Fourth at a
| cottage on Weber Pond and that
they had Just started on their way
home when the accident occurred.
| He stated that in the road, Just be-
| fore coming to the place where the
two cars had crashed, there was an
| outcropping of rock of sufficient
height to cause bad bump and that
! he had turned to the left somewhat
| to avoid this. The approaching ma
| chine was coming down a short hill
and they collided before he had got
! ten completely back on his side of
/ the road which is very narrow. He
had not been drinking although he
! thought that noon that two of the
; men who were with him had been.
| He declared that the fact that the
= front hub caps on the two machines
had hit, resulted in throwing them
across the road onto their wrong
! SlueS. Ills leIt front HuD cap was
cut by the collision and his tire was
| fiat. He had insisted that the Off
GERS fix the tire before driving the
! car. although they had not intended
! to.
/ After being <aken to the station
he declared that he laid down on
bench in a cell but that he had seen
the officers come into the cell room.
I They had just looked at him, turned
around. said something about his be-
ing drunk and had gone out quickly.
1 They had not tried to awaken him.
Mrs. MERCER, their daughter. Ger
maine and William H. Palmer, who
was with them in the machine cor
roborated this testimony. Frederick
Holland who employs MERCER was
called as a character witness. Joe
Foster who had been in the car at
the time of the accident testified
that he had had some liquor to drink
that day.
Court adjourned until $50 this
| morning.