The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1932-12-28
Election Contest
Hearing Is Begun
County Judge Davies Testifies
to Ballot Tampering in
Commissioner Case
TIEDMAN.M IN FIGHT
Seat on County Board Involved
in Battle over Result of
Last Election

Hearing OF the contest In which
Victor Moynier challenges the election
Of H. F. Tiedman as county commits
sioner from the Fifth Burleigh county
district was begun Wednesday in Bur-
leigh county district court before
Judge Fred Jansonius.
No sooner had the hearing begun
than 1t developed that ballots cast in
second and third precincts Of the first
ward In the city Of Bismarck had not
been delivered to County Judge /. G.
Davies, as required by law.
Davies story, as told from the wit
ness stand, was that q number Of
metal cans had been placed in the
lobby outside Of his office shortly az
ter the election. Some contained UNI
used ballots which were to be returned
to the county auditor and some ap-
parently contained the ballots cast in
the precincts mentioned.
Since they had not been delivered
to him, Davies paid no attention to
them and there they remained. On
the evening Of either November 26 or
%, he said, he noticed that some OF
them should have been delivered to
the county judge.
On the evening of November %,
Davies said, Tiedman inquired how
the ballots cast at the election were
being kept. Davies informed him re-"
garding those in his custody and
called attention to the status of the
ballots cast In the second and third
precincts of the first ward.
County Judge Surprised
The next morning, Davies said, he
came to his office at a. m. and
found his desk chair filled with pack
ages which evidently were the ballots
cast in these precincts. The padlocks
had been removed from the meta!
cans and the cans were empty. he
said.
Immediately he called in witnesses
and had the chair and its contents
photographed.
The chair, with the packages piled
in it as Judge Davies found 1t, was
presented in court Wednesday morn
ing. On top was a large package con-
tanning two big rolls Of paper, one of
which evidently was bundle Of no
party ballots, on which the names Of
Tiedman and Moynier appeared az
the election. Another package con-
tanned envelopes in which absent vot-
tiers ballots were received
Objection was made by Zuger and
Tillotson, attorneys for Tiedman, to
offering these in evidence on the
ground of opportunity to tamper with
them and Scott Cameron, Moynier's
attorney, withdrew his proposal that
they be accepted.
Ballots from the other II precincts
in the commissioners district were
offered, however, and accepted by the
court over the objection of Tiedman's
attorneys, who contended they had
not been delivered to the county
Judge in the manner provided by
law and that they had not been prop
erly sealed before such delivery.
Upon examination, however, Judge
Jansonius declared that they showed
on their face they had not been
tempered with.
Cans Were Unlocked
Discussing the status of the ballots
from the two disputed precincts, Da-
vies said the cans were unlocked on
the morning of Nov. 30. when he
found his chair stacked with pack
ages, and that he did not have the
key to the cans. His office was
locked, he said after leaving the wit
ness stand, but there was no evi-
dence Of the lock having been tam
pered with during the night Of Nov.
%.
Cameron said he would delay any
attempt to offer the disputed ballots
in evidence for the purpose Of q re-
count and might never offer them,
asserting he did not know they had
been tempered with Ito that extent"
With the sealed packages contain
ing the ballots from II precincts Of
fered in evidence, the court suggest.
ed that both the contestant and con-
testee appoint bailiffs to make q re-
count. Tiedman, contestee, appoint
ed Tony Beer, already q court bailiff,
and Moynier, contestant, appointed
Patrick Conway.
These men will count the ballots
In the presence Of attorneys for the
contendinE parties. Judge Jansonius
Continued on page seven)
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