Show CHIEF SHEETS SET AT LIBERTY Judge Armstrong Unable to Find That Crime as Charged Has Been Committed SUGGESTS OTHER OFFENCE INDICATES OPINION THAT EVI EVIDENCE DENCE SHOWED A CRIME Hi 4 4 t 0 t f t t 4 i t t 4 I am not able to find that the crime as charged has been commit ted and no matter what I may think I as to the other offenses that may 4 have been shown be the evidence I 1 believe that the motion to dismiss the defendant should be and the same is hereby Arm Armstrong Armstrong strong in discharging Chief Sheets Chief or of Police George A Sheets was discharged and tile the case against him dis dismissed dismissed missed yesterday afternoon b by JUdge Armstrong Tile The decision of Judge Arm Armstrong Armstrong strong followed a legal battle between the attorneys for the prosecution and de defense defense which lasted two days JUdge Armstrong no doubt based his decision on that of the supreme court of California in ill the case of People vs s Gar net as recorded in the California reports which was the only direct au thorit on the statute under which Sheets was prosecuted Chief Sheets was accused of tile the crime o of accessory after the fact In the Me Mc robber robbery in that he concealed the felon felony from a magistrate and sheltered and protected the robbers The statute under which the prosecution was brought Is 13 as follows Statute in Question Section Accessories pErsons who after full knowledge that thata a felon felony has been committed conceal it from the magistrate or harbor and pro the person charged therewith or con convicted thereof are accessories This statute was taken from the laws of California and the wording is identical identical cal At the time this law was incorporated incorporated rated into the Utah statutes no supreme court had passed upon unon it Since it has become a law in this s state te however the case of the People vs Garnet was ap pooled peeled to the supreme court ot of Cali fornia The prosecution In that case was ma made e under the statute and the supreme court in its syllabus made two important de decisions P which the attorneys for the le de in the Sheets case said were par applicable in the case at bar One was that an affirmative act of har boring horing or protecting tile the felons must bH b and the other was that the word charged as used in the tho wording or of te implied a such as a written complaint nt or an ment and not a mere verbel or belief The Sheets Contention Tile The attorneys for lor Sheets contended th that the most the evidence of the state showed was that the chief had either omitted or neglected to apprehend the robb robbers and that no affirmative act of either liar har harboring boring or protecting was shown They also contended t that at as no formal charge had bad been made in writing against any or of orthe the alleged perpetrators of the swindle no crime of the nature charged in the could have been committed by e eThe The lawyers a for the prosecution con contended contended tended that affirmative acts of bidding the robbers to escape hd had been shown on several occasions in this case on til part of the chief and that Chief Chie Sheets directly harbored and protected the swin swindlers diers by endeavoring to hush up the case and get tile the out of the city As to a formal charge being necessary aIo under the statute they said that this was wag not good law when applied to a chief or of police as a police officer could hardly bo be expected to arrest a man first and then thenaid thenaid aid him to escape Attorneys agree that either construe construction thou tion of the law Jaw is possible and that the California authority is the only one that could b followed in the case Hanson Comments on Decision Assistant County Attorney Willard Villard Han Hanon Hanson son on who was an important factor In th prosecution of the case said in corn com commenting upon the decision There is a difference of opInion as to the applicability of 01 the tie dE dEi i ion in this case I think that affirmative tive acts on the part or of the chief in aid ald ing the robbers to escape justice were shown b by us The ruling by the Cali California fornia supreme court that the tho word charge signifies a formal charge I think is not good law especially in so 80 far as it is applied to a police officer my personal opinion as to the proper ruling may be at variance with JUdge Armstrong I have no complaint against it I know this that I would hate to be the chief of police and have haye that array of evidence against me with without without out eXPlaining the situation When court convened at 2 this after afternoon noon Loon the court room was packed to the doors The judge had announced that he would be ready give his decision in the case at the opening of the afternoon ses session session sion and there was an exp expectant hush as the judge stepped to the bench He asked the attorneys if they were read ready to receive the decision and then said sald Text of Decision The UThe court stated this noon that he would take tIlls this matter under advisement The rhe court feels after having given days dayt to the hearing of the testimony and th arguments and having carefully revIewed the citations given ghen by the attorneys for tooth both sides that I am am not able to find that tile the crime as charged has nas been corn com committed and no matter what I may think as to the other offenses that may hate beer been shown by the evidence I believe that the Lile motion to dismiss this proceed proceeding proceeding ing and discharge the defendant hereIn should be and the same is hereby granted It is so ordered Friends of Sheets immediately crowded about him and congratulated him warm warmly I ly as he left the court room Accorn b by his attorneys and seven I fri friends the e chief left the building and r returned to his office at th the stati station n nA A Soren X Christensen was th the thelast last one to speak for the defense and hi his argument which was begun Tues Tuesday day av afternoon continued all yesterday ru m Argument In completing his argument Attorney Christensen cited several decisions jn in including eluding the California case tending to tosho sho show that an affirmative act must bp be committed in the harboring rend nd protect protecting ing of a criminal before the crime or of or ac cesson after the fact could he be proved He followed his citations on the legal as aspect aspect of the case with an eloquent appeal to the court in which he be said in part Where does this evidence show that Chief Sheets did a single e act to aid the criminal to escape They or ac accuse cuse him or of concealing the crime from a magistrate How long is a chief chic of police Continued on Page 7 CHIEF SHEETS S SET AT LIBERTY Continued from Page 1 to have before he is required to report a crime to the proper magistrate In this case he the was given but a single week Why according to the testimony the I told their story of the rob bery to bartenders clerks in cigar store bellboys mail mall carriers and policemen be before before before fore the chief ever eyer knew about it at all Duty to Conceal Crime How Ilow could Chief Sheets conceal this crime with so many knowing about it It is in the testimony that Sheets told the officers and Reporter Phillips to keep still sUll about the case If he had not done this he would not have ho ve been doing his duty If you ou want to catch criminals do you ou want to publish the details of the th crime to the world They The ask us Why the chief ar arrest arrest arrest rest Bell when he was in his office Why Vh Braffet tells tens us that the time ripe to arrest the same man when he saw him in the Sanitarium several days later If It was not ripe at the time Braffet saw Bell Ben how in the name of common sense was it ripe when Bell BelI was in the chiefs office otice several days previous previous ous ousT Then he read the of Pendergrass relative to the visit of him himself hImself himself self and Alexander McWhirter to th the chiefs office and anti denounced as con contemptible contemptible contemptible I the attempt of these two men 1 under the guidance of Braffet to secure evidence in this way against the chief Some Clever Repartee Then in a burst of oratory oraton the attorney attorney attorney ney shouted What has Chief Sheets done don Nothing replied Senator Brown from across the table fairly screamed ined Christer sen He did nothing not ing at all No no Judge Varian Vanan hastily attempting to correct his asso associate associate elate counsel amid peals of laughter from the spectators You mean that he did everything in his power to do in the case caseWell Welt Well the court knows what I mean said Christensen confusedly while the bailiff rapped for tor order The incident was immediately followed by another amusing bit of repartee be between b tween the attorneys for fo the defense and Senator Brown In William McWhirter s testimony he had stated that he bolted down Second South street Christensen said he be took it that to bolt meant to break into a run No said Senator Brown it means to leave from the Republican party Well VeU at any an rate replied Christen Christensen sen the seem to have bolted into the Republican party and certainly not out of It 11 Case Built on Suspicion This case was wa built on sus suspicions suspicions suspicions went on Christensen All they thoy can show yet Jet is suspicion and they can cannot cannot cannot not point to a single deed or act of Chief Sheets to justify their suspicions They say aa Bell called up telephone No NoW 75 W 7 which Is Chief Sheets private tele telephone telephone telephone phone More lor suspicion Ve Yc are told however that Bell asked for Chief Sheets and Raleigh but did not get them What becomes of the suspicion What does that shoW shots sho and what bearing does it ha haon hay have hayon on the case ease It is a mere suspicion and nothing more r says he talked to a police policeman policeman policeman man at the Rio Grande depot Where 7 ere is he lie Why they call him to cor corroborate corroborate corroborate testimony We Ve would like very verJ much to have him himas as a witness interposed Senator Brown if J we but knew who he was the Man ManIll ManIll Ill tell you who he was replied Christensen he was Ben Bon Thank you replied the senator They censure Sheets continued Christensen because he did not send sendan an officer with Bell after the money mone That may have haye been wise or unwise Subsequent events showed that it was wise as the man returned with the money All through the case they have tried to weave a web about Sheets but there was nothing to weave and they s neave en cave ve anything except suspicion Braffet It is said told Sheets that t i h believed Donaldson was connected with the case and in support of his theory took the chief to the Antler Autler rooming house and there thero Mrs Young the pro proprietors gave them a description of or orman a aman aman man that would fit Senator Brown Vil Villard lard Hansen Hanson or myself as well as Don Donaldson Donaldson Donaldson Rule of Law Pointed Out OutI I 1 know the court in passing on this case ese will bear in mind the rule of or law that applies to a preliminary hearing that the evidence must show two elements clements First that the crime has been committed not the crime ot of larceny as In this case mind you but the crime of ot accessory after the fact and that there is probable cause to be believe belIeve believe lieve this defendant guilty of that crime It take it that the statute that ap al applies applies plies in this case ease means that a man who conceals a crime must know enough of or orthe the crime alleged to have been concealed i iso so that he would be able to go on the th stand and by his testimony make out a prima facie case against aga the perpetrators How could Chief Chic Sheets do this How could anyone except the themselves do this thir Therefore I say that the crime of accessory after the fact tact was not committed in this case and the th In Inquiry Inquiry need not prOceed beyond beo ond that point Now before I sit down I merely wart want to call caU the courts attention a to the other phase of the tho law which always presumes a defendant innocent until proven guilty and ask asle the court to bear it in mind At the tho conclusion of the argument of f Mr Christensen Judge Armstrong an announced announced announced that he would take the notion motion to dismiss the case under advisement un until until til 2 in the tho afternoon at which Judge Armstrong g gaVe ga e his decision |