People v. La Rue

The indictment charges that the defendants were members of the Industrial Workers of the World, “organized and assembled to advocate, teach, and aid and abet criminal syndicalism.” They were tried jointly and found guilty as charged. Their motion for a new trial was denied and separate judgments of conviction were entered. From such judgments and the order denying their motion for a new trial the defendants have appealed. The appeals are prosecuted jointly on a single record.

During the latter part of March and the early part of April, 1922, J. A. Casdorf and Bari Firey were on trial in the superior court of Sacramento County on a charge of criminal syndicalism. All of the defendants herein were called as witnesses by the defendants in that case and respectively testified that they were then and, for periods of time ranging from a few months to several years prior thereto, had been members of the Industrial Workers of the world. The indictment herein was thereafter returned against them, based apparently upon such testimony. Their testimony so given was introduced in evidence by the people at the trial herein. When such evidence was offered, counsel for the defendants admitted…