Evening star., 1944-07-30
Lawyers and Jurors Suffer Financial Loss
As Sedition TriuI Druqs Into 10Th Week

ioI DrugS Into II
land required the defendant to ac-
lcept appointed counsel not accept
able to him. And the remedy, they
argue, came too late, since the
case proceeded for several days with
Noble deprived of his right to the
lawyer he wanted. Mr.. Laughlir
was fired from the trial after he
filed with the House a petition ask
ing Justice Eicher's impeachment.
I The prosecution says the three
defendants can be tried later If the
Government. elects. Defense attor-
neys contend they have been placed
in jeopardy and could not be tried
again. AS a practical matter, it is
doubtful If the Government ever will
proceed further against them in the
present case. True and Baxter were
regarded as relatively minor figures
in the alleged conspiracy, and Noble
already faces sentences totaling 10
years for violation of Federal and
California sedition laws.
There remain 26 defendants, of
varied racial stocks, activities and
educational background. There is
Harvard-educated Lawrence Dennis,
lecturer and author, World War
officer and State Department at
tache for years. There is Ellis O..
Jones, Yale 80, once editor of the
old humorous weekly Life and a
playwright and satirist. George E.
IDeatherage was production engi-
neer and he was turning out tanks
for the Army when the indictment
cost him his job. Joe McWilliams,
leader of the Christian Mobilizers.
is management engineer. William
Dudley Pelley, leader of the Silver
Shirts, was successful novelist and
Short-Story writer before he became
more interested in occult and eco
nomic theories. George Sylvester
Viereck, German-American propa-
gandist, is widely known as poet and
novelist. Other defendants have
had little formal education, but all
were interested in politics and eco
nomics, and most Of them published,
wrote or lectured, on a large or
modest scale.
All Hate Communism.
Beyond common hatred of Com
munism, there is little of mutual
interest among most of the de-
tendants. A substantial number
avow Antisemitism on every oc-
casion. Others say they hate only
certain Jews who control the
country" Some deny any Anti
semitic tendency. All deny they
Joined any conspiracy designed to
undermine the armed forces.
Many of the defendants were not
acquainted before the trial. But this
is not an essential of a conspiracy.
the courts often have held. 1t is
enough to take part, with guilty
intent, even though your fellow con-
spirators are shadowy strangers.
Some Of the accused hardly speak.
So diverse have their interests proved
since the trial started that it is not
unusual for one defense attorney
to object to question or motion
iinterposed by another. Some defense
counsel move for a mistrial on every
possible occasion. Others get up and
say: I'VE don't join in the motion
We don't want mistrial. We want
an acquittal and expect to get it.
Eight defendants are in District
Jail. Most of these are German ma
tionals or naturalized Americans of
German birth who were associated
with the German American Bund,
and several have sentences to serve
on previous convictions. They in
clude Gerhard Wilhelm Kunze, who
was national bund leader; August
Klapprott, deputy leader; Herman
Max Schwinn, West Coast leader;
Hans Diebel, Franz K. Ferenz, Vie
reck, Pelley and Jones.
16 Free on Bond.
The other 16 are under bond. The
women defendants are Elizabeth
Dilling, widely known as author of
The Red Network and Lois de
Lafayette Washburn, organizer of
the National Liberty party.
The court has pursued a liberal
policy in allowing defendants out
on bail to be absent from the trial.
from time to time, on voluntary
basis. Much has been said about the
casual" way defendants wander in
and out of court. AS a matter of
fact, Justice Eicher has permitted
absences only on consent of de-
fendant's attorney and prosecution
counsel, and there is ample legal
precedent for trial to continue with
one or more of the accused out of
the courtroom. Those connected
with the case point out that it is
difficult for so many persons to stay
Irlgidly in their seats as weeks fol-
low days, and there often are urgent
personal reasons for absence from
the city. Similarly, some defense
attorneys get permission to be away,
after making arrangements for other
defense counsel to represent their
clients while they are absent.
The opening phase of the trial
was perhaps without precedent in
any American courtroom. Disorder
fiared into serious proportions at
nearly every session. Clamorous in
terruptions frequently brought the
proceedings to dead stop. Some
defendants yelled comments and
imprecations, One day, during the
opening statement of Prosecutor
Rogge, every available deputy mar
shall in the building was sent in to
try to keep order, and these mea-
Sures failed.
Hard Judicial Task.
Justice Eicher was confronted with
the extremely difficult task of main
tanning some semblance of quiet and
decorum and at the same time pro-
tecting the rights of the accused
and thus avoiding measures of preju-
dicial harshness. Many observers
predicted that jury never would
be sworn.
But gradually the bedlam sub
sided. Several defense attorneys
were fined for contempt-perhaps
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