PLEA OF 'NO DEFENSE' IS MADE BY E. C. HOLT AS BUCKMAN TRIAL BEGINS
Jacobs, Herbert
Plea of 'No Defense' Is Made by E. C. Holt As Buckman Trial Begins Gets Sentence Later; Judge Vetoes Delay By HERBERT JACOBS EDGAR C. HOLT, secretary of the B. E. Buckman Co.. sprang a surprise...
...Oshkosh...
...I had supposed at that time," he said, "that anyone wanting to use that testimony would make some effort to preserve that testimony...
...A large amount spent by the mutual companies to lobbyists to prevent taxation would go a long way toward taking care of the old age pensioners...
...Argue For Delay Arguments on the motion of Atty...
...There's got to be a showing that the witness will be available at some future time, and there i« nothing to show that he will," Boyle said...
...8, defense counsel knew that Bracy would not be able to go to trial...
...To Be Sentenced Later Holt will not be sentenced until after the trial is over, Judge Charles G. Briggle...
...Monday when he withdrew his plea of not guilty and pleaded nolo contendere (no defense...
...Mr, Bracy's testimony is very material...
...The application Is wholly insufficient for many reasons, and tha application is denied...
...I don't think anybody who hasn't made such an effort is entitled to a delay...
...Barlow had discharged 65 employes...
...Maelntyre declared...
...He also jwlntcd out...
...Of the 48 veniremen called, four failed to appear, and 17 were excused by Judge Briggle after brief conferences with each other...
...No explanation was given in court as to why Holt had changed his plea...
...The motion declared that Louis P. Bracy...
...Barlow must first exhaust the department re-employment list and the general list before he can hire new employes," Bieberstein said...
...Carl N. Hill, attorney for Buckman and Louis C. George, said his clients were anxious to proceed with the trial, and suggested that the government stipulate exclusion of testimony regarding Bracy...
...Through their attorney, A. J. Bieberstein, Madison, former member of the board of personnel, the employes maintained their seniority rights had not been respected...
...Cites Seniority Standing He pointed out that under civil service regulations, when an employe is discharged he Is immediately placed on an eligible list for the department, as well as a general list...
...Judge Briggle was about to have the jury roll called when the Holt plea intervened...
...that defense attorneys had made no effort to take Bracy's testimony in the form of a deposition...
...My client Is a business man, and this indictment hanging over his head has prejudiced him in the conduct of his business...
...At his arraignment Mar...
...Atty...
...Atty...
...Atty...
...The trial was slow in getting under way this morning, and efforts to select a jury wer» continuing this afternoon...
...3. That the law did not contemplate that the employes of the department should continue in service indefinitely...
...Springfield...
...The whole thing is based on inference, supposition and guess...
...Tax Staff Left To Barlow By Solons, Claim The legislature intended that Elmer Barlow, tax commissioner, could select his staff either from the old employes of the tax commission or from eligible civil service lists, J. Ward Rector, deputy attorney general, told the state supreme court Friday...
...Victor Tronsdal, Eau Claire, for Wilbur V. Malkson, Bangor, Me., former Eau Claire branch manager, joined in the Wright motion, as did MaxweK Manzer, attorney for Clarence D. Winebrenner, Madison, and Fielding T. Spain, Milwaukee...
...I assume that your honor will not impose sentence at this time, and I ask leave to be heard at the time sentence is imposed...
...president, and Louis C. George, vice president, had entered pleas of not guilty...
...Declaring that Bieberstein's contention was that by certifying the payrolls Barlow had automatically rehired all employes It did not mean they were rehired but that it would take some time to perfect his reorganization and they were to be maintained pending the reorganization...
...Bullington tried to get Judge Briggle to rule that the government had not fully complied with the court or-der on a bill of particulars which had required the prosecution to name the "other persons defrauded" which the indictment charged...
...However, John P. Bullington...
...TaxingMutuals For Aged Plan of Maelntyre Candidate Sees 'Golden Eggs" For Pension Payments MUTUAL insurance companies, which are now tax free, "are the hens that will lay the golden eggs for the old age pensioners," DarreH Maelntyre, Madison attorney who has announced that he will seek the Progressive senatorial nomination in Dane county, told a recent meeting of pensioners...
...Resignations of Evans, Page Are Accepted Chief Justice Marvin B. Rosenberry announced from the bench today that the court had accepted the resignations from the state bar of Attys...
...Holt and his attorney, Nat P. Biart, then stepped before the bench...
...Other defendants would be implicated tinder the "conspiracy" count of the indictment, Wright pointed out...
...Soon afterward he left the courtroom, although Biart remained...
...The farmer said he could get some hired help, but "not the kind I want...
...No former clients of ihe Buckman Co were visible in the audience...
...We're going to be met by what I can call a 'parade of witnesses' on this point...
...6. Holt and all the other defendants, including B. E. Buckman...
...He was excused...
...Dist...
...Boyle moved rejection of the motion for delay...
...As far as the rest of us are concerned...
...2. That the law creating the department did not set any time before which Barlow had to make his selection and that the right to select also Implied the right to refuse to select certain employes...
...Holt, I now move to withdraw his plea of not guilty and to enter a plea of nolo contendere (no defense...
...111., who is presiding, ruled today...
...Biart said: "On behalf of the defendant...
...The prosecution had replied by handing over a 45 page listing of 2.800 names, which in fact incluced all the customers and even the prospect list of the Buckman Co., Bullington said...
...Fred R. Wright, Milwaukee, counsel for Frank Shotola, former Milwaukee branch manager, asking for a delay in the trial consumed most of the morning...
...Before court was called, Holt sat next to Buckman and George, chatting with them...
...Holt did not speak during the change of plea...
...John J. Boyle declared...
...When one farmer said he could not get any help, Judge Briggle asked, facetiously, "What, no unemployment...
...We insist on our constitutional right to a fair and speedy trial," Bullington said...
...If elected state senator for this district, it is my plan to put through a bill taxing the mutual insurance companies for the sole and express purpose of raising funds for the old age pensioners and likewise increasing the present payments to old aga pensioners...
...Houston, Tex,, counsel for Edwin J. "Toad" Crofoot, Bay City, Tex., resisted the motion for delay...
...was charged in the indictment with making fraudulent statements, and that Bracy would be prevented by illness from taking the stand to deny government testimony on this point...
...In a reorganization of the tax department, effective Mar...
...Evans, former municipal Judge of Waukesha, Is now serving a prison sentence growing out of an investigation of slot machine operations In Waukesha county...
...Barlow appealed to the court from a decision of Circuit Judge A. C. Hoppmann refusing to quash an action brought by 14 discharged employes of the department of taxation to force Barlow to rehire them...
...Harris Allen and Ed Babcock, both of Madison, were excused when they said they were acquainted with several of the defendants...
...Wright said, "we are faced with a situation where government witnesses will take the stand and tell of these alleged misrepresentations, and as far as we are concerned, it will stand as a verity before the jury because we'll have no way of disproving it...
...Holt's change of plea, and the severance of Casey and Bracy from the present trial, left only eight persons to be tried...
...Judge Briggle asked whether the change in plea was acceptable to the prosecution...
...The affidavits accompanying the motion are very general...
...Just a moment, there's a plea to be changed, your honor," Dist...
...The government is willing that the plea be accepted...
...Every seat In the courtroom was filled as the trial began, but it turned out later, when prospective jurymen were excused during the motion for delay, that two-thirds of the seats had been occupied by veniremen...
...The state board of bar commissioners recently launched an investigation of Page...
...Boyle said...
...The court then indicated that Holt would not be sentenced until after the trial is over...
...hp declared...
...Under this system they set aside a certain amount of taxation and this amount is paid by the policy holders although not one cent of the amount paid by the policyholders toward ihe tax fund is ever paid out by these companies...
...After over-ruling a plea by several salesmen defendants to postpone the trial to the fall term of court because of illness of two defendants...
...The mutual insurance companies operate on the theory that they are a non-profit organization, although they have established a rating bureau not sanctioned by the state and not under control of the state...
...Judge Briggle commented that at the time of arguments in the case Apr...
...Bieberstein slated that the law clearly contemplated that Barlow should either select his personnel from the old staff or else take his employes from civil service lists...
...Rector's Arguments In his arguments before the court, Rector made the following contentions : 1. That the law creating the department of taxation contemplated that the tax commissioner should have the right to select the whole or any part of his personnel either from the old staff or from eligible civil service lists...
...David M. Evans, Waukesha, and Joseph G. Page, Jancsvillc, surrendering their licenses to practice law in Wisconsin...
...as the trial of Holt and 10 other Buckman officers and employes on mail fraud and security law violation charges opened...
...Boyle, however, rejected the stipulation...
...sprang a surprise in federal court her...
...Several farmers were among those excused...
...It was his contention that the 14 employes all had superior seniority standing over other employes retained in the department and that Barlow in discharging employes should be compelled to observe these seniority rights...
Vol. 10 • May 1940 • No. 20
