The Lexington advertiser. [volume] (Lexington, Miss.) 1904-1985, 1947-10-23
Criminal Term Court
Held In Lexington;
Judge Jordan Presides
Juries E%mopneIIed;
Murder Troll Today;
Mis- Trial Declared

Mis- TriuI Declared
The October term of criminal
court was convened in Lexington
Monday morning with Special Judge
Arthur Jordan, of Greenwood, ma
tive Holmes citizen and widely
known attorney, presiding in the abb
sence of Circuit Judge S. F. Davis,
who is i'll.
The first day of court was taken
up with the empanelling of the two
petit juries, setting of the docket
and other routine court procedure.
Petit juries were empanelled as
follows:
Jury Number /
William D. Brock, T. H. Johnson,
Floyd McNeer, T. B. Lehman, o. c..
Burrell Sam Carpenter, E. S. Keith.
j. D. Kealhofer, S. B. Taylor, o. C.
Henson, Abner Ables and A. M.
Torrance.
Jury Number 2
M. C. Brough, E. I. Russell, H. l..
Malone, T. H. Bradley, Joe Harth-
cock, Jim Dickard, Tom Mcbride, r.
r. Truitt, Henry Baughn, George
Pettus and Otis Stephenson.
All Of the members Of petit jury
number one were summoned for
jury service.
Members of petit jury number two
were picked up in the courtroom.
The only members of the petit
juries listed above to actually sit
on a Ease thus far are Messrs. Brock.
Johnson, McNeer, Carpenter. Keith,
Kealhofer, Taylor and Ables.
Polk Case Today
Scheduled for today on the court
docket is the case of the state against
Fred Polk indicted for murder in
connection with the fatal shooting
of Pete Mclean. alleged roadhouse
operator of lei Pickens, about six
months ago.
Mcbride Case Friday
John Mcbride, Jr., Of Durant, in
dicted for bigamy, will be tried Fri
day morning, according to the court
docket. Should the Polk trial ON
sumo more than one day the Nc
Bride trial will be set later.
Case Is Continued
The case of William Hocutt, in
dicted for attempted rape by the
Holmes County Grand Jury this
month, has been continued until the
next term of court.
NEGRO Pleads Guilty
Clifton Jenkins, colored, Of Pick
ems, pied guilty to assault and bat
terry and was fined $4,000 and costs.
Mistriol Declared
A mis-trial was declared in the
last Of Marshall Powell, and his
brother, Olander Powell and j. G.
Layne, all three indicted for en-
couraging and promoting a gambling
game, to wit, a dice game, at the
Rainbow Garden in Durant on Sat-
urday night, September goth, 1947.
This is the only case to be tried
and completed this week.
The jury reported it could not
agree on a verdict and a mis-trial
was declared by the Judge.
This case will be tried again at the
April term of court in Holmes
county.
Members of the jury sitting on
the Powell-LaYne gambling case
were II. L. Mulone, Sam Carpenter
Floyd McNeer. S. B. Taylor, w. D.
Brock, E. S. Keith, Abner Ables, L.
H. Brudley. r. H. Johnson, Otis
Stevenson, J. D. Kealhofer, and J. c.
Dickurd.
The motion made by the defense
to dismiss the same charge against
Doc Weems on the same indictment
was sustained by the Court.
A motion by the defense to dis
miss the charges against Layne was
overruled.
Testimony began on this case with
the opening of court Tuesday morn
ing and continuing until $50 o'clock
Tuesday afternoon at which time
court was recessed to convene again
Wednesday morning at $3.50 o'clock.
The testimony and arguments were
concluded at one o'clock Wednes-
day when the jury retired for it's
deliberations.
The jury came in at 4:45 Wednes-
day afternoon.
Clear Cut Case
The state. through District Attor-
ney Howard Dyer, Jr., of Greenville,
and County Attorney Pat M. Bar
rett, Jr., of Lexington, made out a
clear case against the defendants,
Marshall Powell and Olander Pow
ell and a substantial case against
their brother-in-law, j. G.. Layne.
Four reputable witnesses gave
their sworn testimony that they
were at the Rainbow Garden ear
Durant on Saturday night, Septem-
Der goth, 1947, and were shooting
dice in the gambling room.
One of the witnesses swore that
Marshall Powell himself was runn-
ing the dice table while he (the wit
nessl was shooting dice; that he
bought chips from Marshall Powell
Of the beginning of the game, that