Iron County Record | 1956-05-03 | Page 1 | Utah Supreme Court Upholds Verdict of Trial Court in Ashdown Murder

Utah Supreme Court Upholds Verdict Of Trial Court in Ashdown Murder The Utah Supreme Court Monday Mon-day upheld the first degree murder mur-der conviction of Mrs. Milda Hopkins Hop-kins Ashdown, 35, Cedar City. Mrs. Ashdown was convicted of the scrychnlne poisoning of her husband, Ray Ashdown, on JiUy 5, 1955, and was sentenced to life imprisonment. She Is now Incarcerated in the women's prison at Canon City, Colo. Her case was appealed to the supreme court, not on the basis of guilt or innocence, but on the allegation that a confession was obtained by coercion and duress, and that the trial Judge erred in his instruction to the Jury. However, a unanimous decision of the Supreme Court upheld the District Court action. Written by Chief Justice Roger I. McDonald, the high court decision de-cision denied the appelant's claim that her confession was obtained by means of coercion, duress and promises of immunity. immun-ity. After reviewing the circumstances, circum-stances, the decision concludes, "We agree with the trial couit that the confession was voluntary volun-tary within the meaning of constitutional con-stitutional provisions against self-incrimination and properjy admlssable in evidence." The Supreme Court also held that instructions to the Jury were correct, stating: 'The instruction was correct in allowing the Jury to weigh the circumstances surrounding the giving of the confession and de-terming de-terming not the admissibility of the confession but rather the credibilty of the confession as evidence."