Wm. O. Allen and HenryHenry M Brakenridge Counsel
forAskenawaAskenawa the prisoner moved. the
Court to be permitted to be permitted now
to answer to the Indictment of which he stands
changed. Objected to by Thomas T Crittenden the
attorney general & after argument the court delivered their opinion as follows
the motion before the court is that the prisoner may be permitted to answer the indictment
He will appear from the minutes of Monday Last that the prisoner has been already ar
raiged, that he did stand mute that the plea
of not guilty has been entered; has this plea been
entered at a proper time and under all the circumstances that the Land constables
Is the point now to be ? He has been
by the counsel for the prisoner that the
law provides that the person accused and in
dicted of any capital offence shall have a
copy of the indictment and a list of the jury
two entire days at least before the trial, that
this has not been the case in the present instance
towit the prisoner had not a copy of the
indictment and a list of the jury delivered
to him two entire days before he was required
to answer to the indictment that in conse
quence of this he had a right not to answer and that no plea could legally be entered be
entered for him - the courts of Oyer and
Terminer in this district and the courts that have been called in this territory by Commissioner
of the governor in of a certain Act
of congress for the trial of Capital offences com