Viewing Criminal Law & Crime Category (11) found:"The Noonan Case." (1912)This is a brief account of a murder that was committed in Fillmore County in October, 1874, but not resolved until November, 1902. It appeared in a history of the county published in 1912. Magdalene R. Sparrow: "Legal History and Law Enforcement in Big Stone County." (1981)Big Stone County was established by the legislature on February 20, 1862. In 1981, Magdalene R. Sparrow published a history of the county. She included a short chapter on lawyers who had practiced in the county, several of whom practiced more than a half-century. She also related several anecdotes about law enforcement, the most entertaining being about the apprehension in the fall of 1879 of "two members of Doc Middleton's gang" who were wanted for bank robbery, horse stealing, and kidnapping. Darwin S. Hall: "The First Lawsuit in Birch Cooley Township." (1916)The first trial in Birch Cooley Township in Renville County was held in 1868 in the small house of Willard Drury, Justice of the Peace. John Tracy was prosecuted for cruelty to his neighbor's cattle when they strayed over the property line onto his land. He was tried before a conscientious six man jury, which rendered its verdict: guilty but not guilty. This story, told by Darwin S. Hall, appeared first in a history of Renville County published in 1916. James Redman: "The Killing and Transfiguration of Harry Morris." (2001)In mid-August 1931, a gangland-style murder was committed on a two-lane road south of Red Wing, Minnesota. The victim was Harry Morris, a career bank robber, well known to police in St. Paul and Minneapolis. The killer was never apprehended, though he almost certainly was James Allen Camden, a bootlegger loosely affiliated with the Capone gang. Camden had testified in Chicago before a grand jury which indicted Al Capone. Capone learned of Camden's betrayal through sources inside the grand jury whom he had bribed. Camden was aware that Capone was plotting to silence him. Why Camden came to murder Morris to avoid Capone is told in this article by James Redman. It appeared first in "The Great River Review." "The Celebrated Kate Noonan Case." (1877)On February 16, 1877, Kate Noonan shot and killed William Sidle outside the Nicollet House in Minneapolis. She was tried in June, but the jury deadlocked. When the judge dismissed the jury, Noonan was in her cell. Her attorneys sought to free her via a writ of habeas corpus on the ground that her absence from the courtroom barred a retrial. After the district court refused, she appealed to the supreme court, which heard oral argument on July 3, 1877. The next day, the "Pioneer Press" newspaper carried a lengthy account of that proceeding, one of the few we have of appellate arguments in this state in the late nineteenth century. In October the court dismissed her appeal, and she was retried in December. On December 24, 1877, the jury returned its verdict. Again, the "Pioneer Press" carried a long and colorful description of the atmosphere in the courtroom when the verdict was read. "Crime in Goodhue County, 1854-1877." (1878)A history of Goodhue County published in 1878 contained short descriptions of several murders and criminal prosecutions between 1854, when the first district court session was held, and 1877. "Justice Court in Houston County" (1850s)A history of Houston County published in 1882 repeated several anecdotes about cases tried or attempted to be tried in justice court in the 1850s. "The First Lawsuit in Becker County" (1907). The first trial in Becker County, Minnesota, was held about November, 1871. Harvey Jones was prosecuted for domestic assault. He was tried before a jury, which found him guilty. He was sentenced to 30 days in jail. As Jones was being transported to jail, he received some shrewd legal advice from a fledging lawyer named W. W. Rossman. His journey ended shortly thereafter.
"Murders and Outrages Committed in Watonwan County." (1916)Several murders committed in Watonwan County from 1872 to 1916 are described in this chapter from a joint history of Watonwan and Cottonwood Counties published in 1916. About two-thirds of the chapter is an excerpt from a first person narrative of the Northfield Bank robbery in 1876 by Cole Younger. Wayne E. Webb & J. I. Swedberg: "The Lawbreakers of Redwood County." (1964)Numerous crimes committed in Redwood County from the 1860s through the 1950s are described in this article, which originally was a chapter in a history of the county published in 1964.
"The Celebrated Paulson Case." (1916)Shortly after Paulson, a Scandinavian immigrant, disappeared after a night of drinking "frontier whisky" at a log inn in Douglas County, the wife of the innkeeper located the body in a small lake and collected a reward of $500. One of Paulson's compatriots was tried for his murder but acquitted. Years later, the murderer confessed on his death bed, in Canada.
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