◆ SpookStack

CRIMDEL(LA 94-558) 2/16/60 necessarily be before a judge other than CLARKE. The defense attorney exploded at this news. He was so desirous of keeping his client in Judge CLARKE's court that Friday morning he and wooD appeared there and changed wood's plea from not guilty to guilty. Over the vigorous protest of Assistant U.S. Attorney THorNTON, who argued that wooD's sentence should not be set until the judge had opportunity to obtain a pre- sentence probationary report, CLARKE forthwith passed sentence on wooD, giving him five years in prison. THoRNToN and investigating agents were understand-. ably chagrined, despite the fact they half expected CLARKE would give probation, because whatever leverage they had on wooD which would help solidify the case against his con- federate was dissolved. The agents had lost their opportunity to obtain a signed statement while wooD was still wooing the court - a serious loss, as any investigator well knows. However, on Friday they visited wooD in a final attempt to do what they could with him. He was compli- mentary to the Bureau - in a left-handed sort of way - when he admitted, "I guess I got out of my weight league." #Beyond that, because as~he said he had nothing to gain since he had. already been sentenced, he goaded his interrogators, saying he did have one statement for them. It was "Goodbye.' Like Judge CLARKE is reported to have commented, he. is a soft judge -- but he does clear the dockets, an accomplishment of which he proudly boasts.