The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1951-04-13
APPEAL
Continued from Page one)

I
for the bOndsmen, requested APP
peal of the decision to the SUI
periOr Court.
The hearing was opened by Mr..
McCown's calling Archie Burrus
to the stand. After a few routine
questions, he asked the court for
permission to allow Mr.. Burrus,
in the absence of Litchfeld Peele
(for whom capus had been is
sued, without effect, two weeks
ago., to tell about the conversa-
ton which took place between
Burrus and Peele on May %, 1850,
before Burrus had signed the
bond.
Solicitor Martin Kellogg object
ed to the testimony proposed on
the ground that it was immater-
ial. The objection was sustained
by Judge Baum, whereupon Mr..
McCown asked Burrus to step
down from the witness stand. No
other witnesses were called dur
ing the remainder of the hearing.
Judgment Questioned
The attorney for the bondsmen
read the May % judgment to the
Court, then asked the court to dis
miss Burrus and White from their
bond for the reason that the judg-
ment in the abandonment case
was faulty:
% that Burrus and White
were not mentioned in the official
court record of the Judgment CIV
en- ON May %, 1850, nor was the
fact that the defendant was re-
leased on bond; (2) that the judg-
men as shown in the record i'm
posed no penalty on Peele-that
is, no punishment was ordered and
suspended upon the provision that
he fulfill the terms of the courts
order for the support of his wife
and the judgment and the bond
were therefore unenforceable;
! e that only civil judgment had
been imposed on Peele, which left
the bondsmen without protection;
| az that the judgment involved
"illegal consideration" and that
the defendant Peele could walk
out, which is exactly what he did"
Mr.. McCown argued that the bond
was, in effect, a ransom for the
defendants freedom. He cited Su-
preme Court rulings to show that
bonds in comparable cases had
been held to be unenforceable.
The bondsmen's lawyer conclud-
ed by asking why the bondsmen
had not been informed before
early in the year of Peele's de-
fault in the payments stipulated
in the May % order of the court,
if the last such payment had been
made so long ago as, August of
last year.
Bond Undenied
Mr.. Kellogg said that the State
stood at an "obvious disadvan-
tage" because the judgment "was
inadvertently recorded Incorrect
ly." Yet, he added, it was his
memory, corroborated by all those
with whom he had talked about
the case, that the judge had in
deed ordered punishment, a road
sentence, then suspended it upon
fulfllment by Peele of the pay
ment schedule written in the re-
corded judgment.
81 do not hear it contended that
they did not execute this bond"
Mr.. Kellogg said. "While we adj
NIT that the court records say
what they do, the fact that we
have the bond is proof that, some
where along the line, your honor
did require it." The attorney add-
ed that the law says that the court
may make such provision for the
support of the wife in such cases
as its Judgment may deem reas-
enable. A road sentence, Kellogg
said, would have aided the wife in
no way at all.
Before giving his decision,
Judge Baum said that the reason
the bondsmen had not been called
to account at an earlier date was
"a matter of courtesy to the
bondsmen. But l have talked with
4 them at length about the matter
previously" He told them that the
absence of Peele from the court
was more matter of concern to
the bondsmen than to the court,
and that the greater responsible
ity for his attendance was theirs,
He then pronounced judgment.
Other Cases
Three other cases were called
before the bondsmen's hearing,
Bond for SIS each was forfeited