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Name: Florence E.
Miller Age/DoB: abt 1887 County of Conviction:
Flathead Judicial District: 11th Case No.: 1036 Date of Conviction: June 21, 1918 Sentence: $350
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Allegations: Complaint filed on April 3, 1918, says she "did
utter certain disloyal, profane, violent, scurrilous, contemptuous, and
slurring language about the soldiers and sailors of the United States." Case Details: Sentenced
on June 25, 1918. Fined
$350 fine, and "committed to the
custody of the Sheriff of Flathead County until said fine was paid," at
a rate of $2/day. In a petition after sentencing, she argued through her
lawyer that the jury was prejudiced by remarks made about the county attorney
referring to other sedition prosecutions and stating that all of defendant's
witnesses were German "thereby intimating that said witnesses were not
to be believed." She also alleged misconduct because the jury was led to
believe that they would not be discharged until they arrived at a verdict and
that one or more members of the jury would be prosecuted for perjury
"unless they agreed with the other jurymen after a conviction."
" An
affidavit signed July 10, 1918, by B.B. Butterfield states that he was a
juror in Miller's case. He said the jury deliberated "on or about 24
hours" and that he was one of the jurors who insisted that the verdict
form given to them by the court be modified by striking the words "as
charged" because he did not believe she said the words she was charged
with any malicious intent toward the authority or flag of the United States
or said anything calculated to bring the U.S. form of govt., soldiers,
sailors, flag, etc into scorn, contempt, contumely or disrepute" but
that she made the remarks "for the purpose of aggravating and annoying
Mrs. Ross." Butterfield stated that at the time he voted
"Guilty" that the defendant was not "Guilty as charged." Personal Information: Born in Montana. Married to Levi Miller, a laborer. Florence and Levi
had 7 children. Florence died in August 1984 in Roosevelt County.
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