Viewing Darwin S. Hall: "The First Lawsuit in Birch Cooley Township." (1916)Darwin S. Hall: "The First Lawsuit in Birch Cooley Township." (1916)The first trial in Birch Cooley Township in Renville County was held in 1868 in the small house of Willard Drury, Justice of the Peace. John Tracy was prosecuted for cruelty to his neighbor's cattle when they strayed over the property line onto his land. He was tried before a conscientious six man jury, which rendered its verdict: guilty.....but not guilty. This story, told by Darwin S. Hall, appeared first in a history of Renville County published in 1916. |