RUCKER/Lathrop/Dexter/ Hewett/ Hewitt/Baldwin/ RESEARCHERS DID YOU KNOW THE FOLLOWING STORY.?? A letter from the Sheriff of Idaho County, Idaho to my grandmother, Henrietta Rucker, relating the circumstances of her brother's, Claude Rucker's, death at the hands of his mining partner Submitted by Michael Pearcy Office of Sheriff of Idaho County, Idaho Grangeville, Idaho, June 10th, 1912 Miss Henrietta Rucker Southern Bell Tel. & Tel. Co., Huntington, W. Va. Dear Miss Rucker:-Your letter of May 25th, last, reached this office in due time and has not been answered before on account of the writers absence from the City until now. I Hardly know how to begin to tell you of this sad affair, but will in my own way, give you what information I have at my command. The body of your Brother was found about May 1st, by three men, R. S. Danforth, E. S. Lougee, and J. M. Haynie, all of Dixie, Idaho, being in the water on the East side of the Salmon River about a mile below what is know as the Sam Myers Ranch. This place is about 18 miles from Dixie, Idaho, and about 75 miles downthe river from where it was put in. This part of Idaho County is a very rough and mountainous country and very inaccessable at any time of the year, and almost impossible to get into during the winter months. The body was buried near where it was taken from the water by C. H. Prescott and T. H. Thomas, also of Dixie, Idaho. I am informed that the body when taken from the water was fairly well preserved, but when taken out of the water decomposition soon set in, and it was impossible to keep the body but a few hours or perhaps a day at the most. At the time the body was found it would have been almost impossible to get it out to the railroad and even now I doubt if it would be practical to bring out the casket as it would have to be carried on pack horse for some 18 miles to Dixie and then 25miles to Elk City, and then by stage some 65 miles to the nearest railroad point. Sam Pruitt, the man who took your Brothers life, came down the Salmon River in a boat to Riggins, Idaho, and from there to this place to tell his story of the awful affair, and surrendered himself to us long before the story of the killing could have reached us had he not taken that method of coming out. Pruitt was immediately confined in the County Jail, and I immediately sent three men into where the killing had occured to make an investigation, and if possible to locate the body, and spent several hundred dollars in investigating the matter. We held Pruitt here in Jail for over a month, and finally, in the absence of sufficient evidence to bind him over to the District Court, and upon the direction of the Prosecuting Attorney released him. Pruitt has kept this office posted as to his whereabouts ever since and I could locate him by wire in a few hours at this time. The Prosecuting Attorney and this office have carefully considered every word and act of Pruitt and have found everything, even to the gunshot wound in the body and the rope with which he tied the rock to the body with which it was sunk into the water, substantially as he stated. So far we have not a single thing in the way of evidence that would justify any Court or Judge in binding him to the Trial Court. The worst feature in the statement of Pruitt, and this is the one on which the Prosecutor and I worked, was the fact that after the killing Pruitt sank the body into the river. This statement naturally would lead one to think that there had been foul play, and both the Prosecutor and I acted on this presumption until we had made an exhaustive investigation. In writing this letter I have not gone into detail for it would take hours to write you everything concerning the case, and even then you would never believe anything but that your brother had been foully murdered, but I have attempted to tell you what had been done in a general way. You have unjustly criticized me when you say that I have been "trying to shield the slayer rather than justify the slain" and when you know more of the case you will regret having written them. On the contrary we did everything within our power, regardless of expense, to secure the facts and so far have failed to find sufficient evidence to hold Pruitt for trail. There is no need of my going into the question of your brothers sanity for I realize as well as anyone that it is next to impossible to convince anyone as near and dear as a Brother or Sister that such would be possible. I do not know, and perhaps no living person knows positively. However I have letters to this effect, and while I do not know who your Spokane, Wn. Informant is, have little doubt but that it was from one who wrote me in substance that Mr. Rucker was of a morbid disposition. In conclusion Miss Rucker will say that I have done all that I could see possible in regard to this sad affair, and feel that the Prosecuting Attorney would not have authorized his release had there been any possible chance of holding him to the District Court. I will be glad to give you any further information concerning your Brother if you make it possible for me to do so. Very respectfully, J. I. Overman Sheriff Back to the Lawrence Register Please send comments to: genblc@oplin.lib.oh.us Copyright © 1997,1998, 1999 Martha J. Kounse and Briggs Lawrence County Public Library. All rights reserved. No part of this website may be reproduced, re published, or re transmitted without the expressed written consent of Martha and/or the Director of Briggs Library.