OCR Text |
Show WHICH WIFE SHALL IT BE? Judge Zane Dissents from Powers and Boremmi on an Important Point in Polyjaray Cases. The Supreme Court convened Saturday Satur-day afternoon and rendered an opinion in the case of the Lehi Irrigation Company Com-pany vs. Stephen Moyle et al., confirming confirm-ing the judgment of the lower court. This opinion was one of extraordinary length, and was delivered by Judge Bore-man. Bore-man. At the conclusion of the reading the court took a recess for supper, and met again at 9 p. in. to dispose of the two cases of Apostle Lorenzo Snow. These cases were both - anneals! fin rtra. I i cisely the same grounds. The points upon which it became the duty of the Honorable Honor-able Judges to pass an opinion were as to whether the inference were a justifiable one that a man in polygamy is considered to be cohabiting with his first and lawful wife even though he do not resfde with her, but ostensibly confines himself to one of the plural wives ; and also as to the legality of bringing more than one indictment in-dictment for the same offense against the defendant. On the first point it had been contended that the fact of Adelina Snow being the lawful wife of the defendant did not constitute consti-tute the existence of unlawful cohabitation cohabita-tion because defendant had lived with his plural wife Minnie; but that it would be necessary to show that the same relations rela-tions were carried out with Adeline as had been established in connection with Minnie. This point seems to have been well taken by the defense in the light of Judge Zane's former decision, by which, in the case of John Davnes, S. W. Sears and others, he permitted the defendants to chose, themselves, as to whether they I would live with the first and lawful wne or with one of the polygamous wives ; and His Honor held to this opinion in the present cases, and filed his dissent to each decision. In the matter of the admissibility ad-missibility of more than one indictment for the same offense, all the judges concurred, con-curred, and held that so long as the indictments in-dictments covered different periods there need be no limit to them. The dissenting opinion of Judge Zane involves a very important consideration, I particularly to those polygarnists who, in avowing their intentions to conform to the law, have cast off the first and lawful law-ful wife and conferred their attentions and cohabitation to one of those taken in the "celestial" order; and if the opinion of the concurring judges on this point be adopted and enforced any and all of those polygarnists living as above stated are liable to prosecution at anv time notwithstanding notwith-standing that they are only living with one wife, and notwithstanding their declared de-clared intentions before the court. |