The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1951-01-12
JETHRO MIDGETT~
FOUND GUILTY.
OF A S S A u 1T
Large Crowd Hears Court
Airing of Christmas Day
Squabble on the Banks

| the OCaCe VS. JeCnfO MlQgetC IN re-
corder's court in Manteo on Mon
day, he made a statement which
he said he wished all in the crowd
ed courtroom to listen to atten-
lively. He had long wished to
make such statement, the Judge
said, and the opportunity had
been given him by the case just
completed.
"When l am approached by a
defendant or his friends or any,
one connected with any case not
yet tried, and they talk to me a.
bout the case, I entertain them
only through courtesy. What they
say to me goes away like water
of ducks back. l come here to
listen to the evidence and try the
case here"
Judge Baum then pronounced a
sentence Of guilty and fined Mr..
Midget $40 and the costs of court
upon the charge entered by Lloyd
j. StyrOn that Midget had, on
the evening Of December IS at a
place named Tandy's Place, near
Frisco on the Lower Banks, as
saulted Mr.. Styron ''with his fists
infiicting serious and painful in
jury"
Two other charges had been en-
tered against Midget, who lives
at Rodanthe. Neither were tried.
Both complaints were signed by
r. D. Basnett, special police off
Ger on the Banks. One charged
Midget with being drunk and dis
orderly and disturbing the peace,
and with engaging in an ARRAY,
/ at Tandy's Place on Christmas
night; the other charged him with
drunkenness, disorderly conduct
and disturbing the peace at the
Beacon, operated by Junius Sty-
ron of Hatteras.
The trial ran for about two
hours and was witnessed by near
ly 70 persons, most of them from
the Lower Banks. Both the pros
ecutor, Solicitor, Martin Kellogg,
and the lawyers for the defend
ant, Wallace and Sue McCown,
called number of witnesses to
the stand. The testimony given
by the witnesses for both sides
was in direct conflict on num-
Der of essential points. To disin-
terested spectators in the court
rom, the total effect of the testi-
mony was confused-one thing
only coming out clearly from the
mass of testimony. That was it
must have been a brisk evening
indeed in Tandy's Place on Christ
mas. Exactly what happened
there during the evening wasn't
brought out clearly, but that some
very lively incidents took place,
no one in the court room could
doubt.
Story of the Evening
Mr.. Styron, who took the stand
first as the case opened, said that
he went into Tandy's Place early
in the evening; that he saw Jeth-
70 Midget and a young man NAM
ed Travis Austin wrestling or
dancing on the floor of the place.
Mr.. Styron said he then went to
the bar, where he was served
Coca Cola by Mr.. Tandy, proprie-
tor of the place. Shortly after his
arrival he was approached at the
bar by Jethro Midgett-and soon
an alteration took place between
them. The testimony of all wit
neesses agreed in all essentials ur
to this point. The happenings of
the next few minutes were de-
scribed by defense and prosecu-
ton witnesses in completely diff
ferent ways.
Mr.. Styron said on the stand
that Mr.. Midget approached him
with the question, ''You don't like
me. do your" Styron said that he
replied, "No, I can't say do"
The conversation then became
more and more heated. All who
gave testimony agreed that, dur
ing the exchange of words, Mr..
Styron took of his top coat
whether because he was warm
and "knew Jethro," as he testi-
fed, or because he was preparing
to fight, as Mr.. Midget said he
interpreted the action, the wit
nesses did little to clarity.
The defense charged that Sty-
ron struck at Midget and hit him
harmlessly on the shoulder. Then,
the defense insisted, Midget hit
Styron on the side of the Jaw or
the neck and he slipped to the
floor beside the bar. Styron,
whose hand was bandaged when
he appeared in court, charged that
he fell on the hand and that it
was injured in that way; he said
that he had been unable to use it
since the night of the incident and
that his doctor had told him that
it was, perhaps, broken.
Point at Issue