Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 41, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 February 1909 — Lawyers Working For McCoy’s Release [ARTICLE]

Lawyers Working For McCoy’s Release

Hayward ft Burnett the Lafayette attorneys for T. J. McCoy, are stlE working earnestly to secure his release, and 1 it seems that they have A willing ear in Governor Marshall, whose order for McCoy's release was directly contrary to the wish of tbs board of pardons. It would seem that Governor Marshall could not do better iu his consideration of the VoCoy case than to follow in the path of Ex-Governor Hanley and ascertain the feeling of the people theft suffered losses in the McCoy bank before releasing him. While a great many people here do not care particularly about his release, since It is to come within four or five months any way, still they do think that his crime was sufficient to justify his serving the full term of three years and that that would be very light punishment. The last legislature change# the law for the punishment of embezzling bankers so that the ligditeA sentence that can be imposed would be from 2 to 14 years, and the one ta three year prize packages are no longer available for those unscrupulous hankers who rob their depositors. Robert Parker was sentenced under the latter law, and had Tom McCoy been so sentenced he would have been required to have remained iu the penitentiary for probably ten years. - Pardons should never be granted without mighty good cause and It there is a single reason for the release of McCoy we have never seen it advanced. With some nineteen ln- | dlctments for embezzlement hanging 1 over him, on any one of which lie could have been proven guilty and which if tried separately would hava kept him in the penitentiary the balance of his life, and with the people whom he robbed still suffering because of his criminal management of the bank there is not a reason why Tom McCoy should be released a single day short of the full three years. The stealing of a quarter million dollars should not be treated sa lightly as to have a governor pardon the thief under cover of his Interpretation of the law. Democratte depositors last fall held up their hands in holy horror the election of Watson, claiming that should he be elected he woull pardon Tom McCoy. It must look peculiar to them to see their Idol, Governor Marshall, do or attempt the very thing that they declared without cause Watson would do. The smooth attorneys are doing all they can to secure McCoy’s release and if they should prevail on tha governor to release him it will ha a travesty on justice. Tom McCoy wlft get off easy if he leaves the penitentiary on June 18th. Of the efforts bis attorneys am making the Lafayette correspondent of the’ Indianapolis News says: “Word has been received by Hayward & Burnett, from James ReJ#, warden of the Michigan City Prison, that he has declined to relearn Thomas McCoy, the Rensselaer bank wrecker, from prison. Hayward ft Burnett, after investigating the question, went to Governor Thomas R. Marshall and suggested to him that the old act of 1883, providing for the diminution of senteaca for good behavior had not been repealed by the indeterminate sentence law. As a result, Governor Marshall notified Warden Reid to release McCoy at once, as under the act of 1883, McCoy was entitled to a diminution of blx months for *OO4I behavior. This would have ended hi* sentence a month ago. Warden Reid has written a letter to Hayward ft Burnett, in which ba says that the decision of the Bopreme Court ten years ago is contrary to the opinion of Attorney-Gen-eral Bingham, on which Governor Marshall’s request for McCoy’s release was based. Mr. Burnett raid today that though the language of tha Supreme Court decision seemed tn apply to the McCoy case, the decision. Itself had no connection with the present case, and that the cases went not even similar. He says the Suprema Court went further than necessary la its extended decision, and that ha will make an effort to have the decision so construed that it will bare no application to the McCoy care