| Show MAKE KILLING UNPOPULAR Chief Justice Lane has again shown that he has no sympathy with lawbreakers law-breakers and no patience with the hip pocket portion of humanity The demonstration was made yesterday in passing sentence on Neal Mulloy them the-m n who slew Hughes in Park City last August That the jury should have found a verdict of murder in the second degree seems somewhat remarkable re-markable to those who heard or read the testimony as the judge remarked there were few if any extenuating circumstances in the opinion of moat people the case coming very close to being one of willful if not deliber ate murder However we are not finding find-ing fault with the jury It did its duty conscientiously and commendably leaned to the side of mercy His Honor took cognizance of the triers recommendation recom-mendation though to do so was evidently evi-dently against his conception of what would be justice in the case and sentenced sen-tenced the killer to three years less imprisonment im-prisonment than the law permitted Perhaps the punishment will be severe I vere enough all things being taken into account The law does not con templa e that every fellow will carry a I pistol and use it on either slighter I grave provocation but sometimes and in some places society gets into such a condition of roughnes and recklessness reckless-ness that a killing is not the reat crime that it is at other times and Elsewhere It was this fact doubtless which had its weight upon the jury influencing it to return a verdict for the lesser offense The pistol pocket has never been a badge of respectability in Utah it has been frowned UOT by the people and by the law and we hope that hereafter the courts will be more earnest and more vigorous in their efforts to abolish it Those who kill have been treated with too much consideration and too little severity So many have escaped punishment or been I subjected to only light penalties that the impression has formed in the minds i of a certain element that it is not a very serious thing to shoot a man down who disagrees with them or who happens to stand in their way They use the pistol I as argument arbitrator and avenger but seldom as a protector t It is high I time that a check was put upon this sort of thing and men made to understand under-stand that the only occasion when I the law permits the use of the gun which so many carry is when its use is in selfdefense It is time that this was I the understanding in saloons and in mining camps as well as in sober quiet slowgoing communities It should also be made plain that whisky does not provide a legal excuse for murder mur-der and that intoxication does rot relieve re-lieve the crimiual fr m tho responsibility responsi-bility for his crime If Judge 2ane can have his way we believe that unlawful killings wiT l be unpopular and the kill come I rs will cease to be heroes that life vill be as I safe in a mining camp as else where and that the undesirable elemr nt of society I in the delights which H nin nocket will not boom the Utah cl math bi h mat as being the healthful ant most most desirable on the continent The Mnlloy sentence ad the earnes ness and determination displayed His Honor pronouncing it should and doubtless will have an I excelevt effect on others than the unfortunate un-fortunate thin whose viciousness and recklessness have doomed him to penal servitude for what should be the best years of his life |
