Commonwealth v. Frank

Opinion by

Baldrige, P. J.,

The defendant, Joseph Frank, was indicted, charged with the operation of a lottery. The only witnesses called by the commonwealth to prove the alleged criminal offense were James Lee Hill and Martin Wellman. The commonwealth admitted that Hill was under indictment and in its side-bar offer stated that it expected to be able to prove that these two men and defendant were associated together in the operation of a lottery. Both witnesses refused to testify, claiming the protection of their constitutional privilege against self-incrimination. The commonwealth contended…