Commonwealth Plaintiff
vs
James Lackey Defendant
To His Excellency Gov. B Magoffin

Your Excellency having required of Mr McCoy a Statement of the facts in the above named case, before you will consider the petition presented to you by the citizens of Lexington on behalf of James Lackey who was Sentenced to the Ky Penitentiary for one year upon the charge of Robbery I beg leave as councel for said Lackey to present the facts of his case to you fairly & as I best recollect them. (To wit) On the day upon which this man Lackey was arrested he was found in the company of two notorious characters, vis, A Bridgeford & one Gideon Maney from the facts in the case It seemed that Maney & Lackey accompanied by Bridgeford, Hill & The Prosecutor in the case, vis, Mullen went into an old house near the river for the purpose of playing cards They engage in a game of Seven up Maney & Lackey, playing against Mullen & his friend Hill — after playing Sometime Maney & Lackey wining nearly every time Mullen & his friend begin to suspect foul play, & accuse the par other men of cheating whereupon they entered into a general row. The first Witness, Mullen, Stated

after the fight he went to the river for the purpose of washing his face, & that Bridgeford Hill Maney & Lackey were all with him. He stated that it was his opinion that when they left the house & while he was engaged in washing his face he had his pocket book in his bosom next to his skin, he had on no vest, & nearly all of the buttons were off of his Shirt. After washing he left the river & after he had proceeded some 10 or 15 paces he was stoped by Lackey who engaged in conversation with him, Mullen the purport to which was an appology for the difficulty in which they had at the house while talking Maney court as witness believes that Lackey beckoned to Maney before he, Maney, came up witness stated, that he was confident that he had his pocket book when there parties (last mentioned) were talking to him. Bridgeford & [...] were Sitting near the spot where this conversation occurred. Lackey while talking held him witness by the Lappells of his coat Maney was at his Side, both of Lackey's hands were confined from the fact that he had a hold of Witness with both of them after talking Some time the parties all started up town, when he, witness observed, to Hill & Bridgeford, that his pocket book was missing. Whereupon Lackey remarked that he had better Search all of those present which was declined by Mullen — The Marshall of the city arrested Lackey & Maney in the evening at the Frankfort & Depot he took him be

fore his Honor Jn^o R. Graham Police Judge & they were carefully searched by the Marshal no money was found upon Lackey, who after the Search, of his own free will gave Some three or four dollars to the Marshal some of the money found upon the person of Maney was Identified by Mullen as the money in he had in his pocket book, —

A Young man, whose name I disremember Stated that previous to the arrest of the parties, they to came into his father's Shoe Shop & desired to look at some shoes. They Selected a pair for Maney, why asked Lackey to Loan him Some money to pay for them. Lackey handed him a 1$ bill.. when Maney remarked that if he had a knife he could get money of his own. A knife was handed him & he cut a hole in his coat sleeve & took therefrom a five dollar bill which bill Mullen (it being shown to him on the trial) Said was his money. Hill was present upon the examining trial & gave corroborating evidence as to what Mullen had testified to. This Man Hill made it [...] to be absent in the trial in the Circuit Court to ^though^ recognized by the Police Judge, to appear as a witness for the Commonwealth, This friend of Mullens, the man who seemed So much concerned about the loss of his friends money declined giving him the benefit of his evidence in the Circuit Court, His Honor Judge Nutall refused the prisoners a seperate trial & thus deprived Lackey of the benefit of Maneys tes-

timony. Maney stated to me, & to the jailer I believe, that he & a man then at large got the money & that Lackey received none nor took any part in the affair — I think that the circumstances of the case will warrant your Excellency in exercising clemency towards this unfortunate Young Man He was found in bad company he was judged in my opinion guilty, from the company he kept [...] together with Maney Bridgeford Hill & Mullen were all drunk. Mullen Stated that he was drunk when the fight occured that his pocket book was lying on the table may not Bridges Mullen have been mistaken when he Stated that he had the pocket book at the river He was drunk If this be so If we his pocket book was on the table while they were fighting may not Bridgeford or Hill had taken it. I have given Your Excellency a detailed of of the facts in this case. I think that this Young man has Suffered enough for the offence he has committed & humbly hoping that Your Excellency will See proper to concur with me in this opinion I respectfully Submit all of the above to your consideration

Respectfully Your
Obt' Servant
W. H. Sneed