Salt Lake Tribune | 1917-03-22 | Page 20 | Pratt Seeks Pardon for Life Termer

PRATT SEEKS PARDON i FDR LIFE TERMED Retiring Warden Asks Board to Turn Loose Slayer of Woman. HAS SERVED S YEARS Alvin Heaton Has Made a Model Prisoner and Official's Offi-cial's Family Likes Him. Friendship bids fair to be the key that will unlock the doors ot! the state prison of Utah for Alvin Heaton, a young man of Kane county, now serv-iug serv-iug life sentence for murder. The friendship is that of Warden Arthur Pratt of the state prison for the young man a friendship that has developed in seven years of close association asso-ciation between the warden and the prisoner through service of the latter m the household of the former as a dining room waiter. As a result of the attachment that sprang up between the warden and his family and the prisoner, Jlr'. Pratt has asked the board of pardons to terminate ter-minate the sentence of the young man. Practical assurance that such wifl be done has been given the warden, and it is likely that when Warden Pratt walks out of his quarters April 1 young Heaton will go out with him a free man with an opportunity to make a new start in life. Application Made. Formal application for termination of the sentence of young Heaton has been made to the board of pardons, and a special session of the board has been called for next Friday morning at the prison for the purpose of considering consider-ing the application and taking the formal for-mal action necessary to terminate the sentence of the prisoner and permit him to leave the prison with his friend. Heaton, who is about 26 years of age, has served about eight years in the prison, and for seven years past has been atttrched as a "trusty" to the household of the warden, where he acted act-ed as a dining room waiter and made himself generally useful to the warden, the boards of pardon and generally ingratiated in-gratiated himself into the good will and affections of the children and grandchildren grand-children of the warden's family. A Model Prisoner. "The young man has been a model prisoner," warden i-rau saiu last night, "and he has come up to the mark in every manner. He has been closely attached to my household for seven" years, has been absolutely faithful faith-ful and good and has won the affection and esteem, not only of myself, but. of everv member of my family, especially the 'children. Is it any wonder that in this long and close association iau attachment for the boy has sprung up? "I have asked the board ot pardons to terminate the sentence, so that Heaton may go out a free man when I retire from offiee on the first of April, and it has been agreed that this shall be done." Warden Pratt stated that arrangements arrange-ments had been made to have the young man go to a good job as soon as he leaves the prison, ami that he will be among friends and relatives, where he will have everv opportunity to make a new start in life and make himself a good and useful citizen. Heaton was convicted of killing a young woman in Kane county when he was scarcely 18 years of age.