Summary

Chapter 19 presents the trials of Ernest and Hale. By this time, the cases had become major national news; the press covered them as a bloody relic of the old West. Prosecutors were extremely concerned about Hale’s influence over the judicial system, particularly the possibility that he would intimidate or kill witnesses. To protect him, agents moved Ernest out of the state until he could testify against Hale. Mollie, still shocked by the entire experience, expressed a desire to see or write to Ernest through Agent White. The prosecution faced a serious setback when the trial was moved to an Oklahoma state court, where Hale enjoyed far more influence than a federal setting. Because many of the murders occurred on or around Osage-owned land, the jurisdiction was unclear. Further, the case seemed doomed completely when Ernest, after meeting alone with Hale’s lawyers...