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ay od ; agents how Hale had dominated him all his life. He named the killers Henry Roan Horse and the Smiths; and be said his uncle had plotted ~ we the murders. te. One by one the killers confessed. dn each case they pointed the fin-] ger at Hale. And the story unfolded of how “Ace” Kirby had been doubie-crossed after he blew up the Smith home. a But Hale‘ fought back im one of the bitterest criminal trials ever ‘- held in the Southwest. He boasted when arrested that he could raise a million-dollar bond if necessary, and he must have spent a chunk of. ere moanev The courtroom hattlec were highlighted fev charses of briber: mareew ys" i on — rs, WLLL Ys _ ‘perjury and thteats against witnesses. oan Bilt Hale's battery of lawyers almost succeeded in winning freedom for him. The Federal District Court held in his first trial that the gov- ernment had no jurisdiction, but the U. S. Supreme, Court reversed this decision. The second trial ended in a hung jury after a defense witness gave ptrjured testimony. The perjurer was convicted. Hale was convicted on the third trial, but still the fight hadn't been won, The verdict was set aside on the ground that the trial had been bed in the wiong district. On the fourth try F Hales was convicied and sentenced to life imprisonment.’ It was January 26, 1929. In Osage County, the Indians’ Tribal Council assembled again. And this time they adopted a resolution voicing “our sincere gratitude for ~~ . ethe splendid work done in the matter of the investigating and bringing to justice the parties charged with the murders of . . . members of the Osage Tribe of Indians. . . .” The bloody reign of the “King of the Osage Hills" had ended. The FBI had closed one of the most fantastic cases in its files. om pi —-- a —- ree Page 118 of "The PBI Story, A Report to the People" by. Don Whitehead * Hale wag released from prison on parole in July, 1947. |e a ere ammdet . , Ercoerpt from