The Trial of the Mysterious Spiritual Adviser
A defendant accused of attempted murder is charged by prosecutors with using hypnotic powers to influence court witnesses.
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That Joshua Klein, the mysterious spiritual adviser who is on trial in Judge Easterday's department of the superior court accused of attempting to kill Miss Dora Culbertson, is using hypnotic power to influence witnesses who are testifying against him, was openly charged by Prosecuting Attorney J.I. McMurray and Deputy Prosecutor Burmeister. Mrs. Sauvageot, mother of one of the girls said to be under Klein's influence, exclaimed hysterically, 'I can't testify correctly while that man is staring at me with his glassy eyes. Please take him away.' The court replied that Klein could not be excluded from the room according to law, and that if he were influencing the witnesses, the court was powerless to prevent it.
“I can't testify correctly while that man is staring at me with his glassy eyes. Please take him away.”
While modern courtrooms rely on forensics, this case reflects the era's obsession with the 'occult' and the power of the mind, highlighting how fear of the 'mysterious' often shaped the legal perception of immigrant spiritual leaders at the turn of the century.
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