Horace G. Benson (1863 – January 30, 1922) was an American criminal attorney.
Horace G. Benson | |
|---|---|
 Benson's portrait for the Colorado Bar Association | |
| Born | 1863 Atchison, Kansas, US |
| Died | January 30, 1922 (aged 58) Denver, Colorado, US |
| Occupation | Criminal attorney |
| Political party | Republican |
Biography
editBenson was born in Atchison, Kansas, in 1863, and is of English descent. His mother died at a young age, and he and his father moved to Colorado, living in Denver in 1872, Del Norte in 1874, and Placerville in 1876.[1] He attended Colorado public schools.[2] On October 24, 1884, he was admitted to the Colorado Bar Association.[3]
As a lawyer, he prosecuted 31 murder cases, losing 6, and defended in 27 murder cases, losing 1.[1] Notably, he defended Gertrude Gibson Patterson in the trial for her husband's murder; she was found not guilty.[4][5][6] He served as a plaintiff in a corporate case in the Colorado Court of Appeals in 1914.[7] He defended Italian immigrant Frank Eli in a robbery case in 1897; he was found not guilty.[8]
In 1910, Benson ran as a Republican for Colorado Senate, getting 9.6% votes—13,881 votes—losing to William H. Sharpley. In 1916, he ran for the Denver District Attorney's Office,[9] getting 37.9%—23,796 votes—winning the election.[10]
Benson died on January 30, 1922, aged 58, in a hospital in Denver, of complications during abdominal surgery.[11]
References
edit- ^ a b George, Charles Ellewyn (1914). Lawyer and Banker and Southern Bench and Bar Review. Lawyers and Bankers' Corporation.
- ^ "Bench and bar of Colorado (1917)/Portraits - Wikisource, the free online library". en.wikisource.org. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
- ^ "Collection: Horace Grant Benson papers | Rare and Distinctive Collections – University of Colorado Boulder". archives.colorado.edu. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
- ^ "Find Mrs. Patterson Innocent of Murder; Jury Decides Her Killing of the Husband Who Sold Her to Another Was Justified". The New York Times. 30 November 1911. p. 8. Retrieved 2024-04-14.
- ^ "Colorado's Trial of the Century | Adam James Jones". adamjamesjones.com. 2011-06-01. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
- ^ "Patterson's Mother Bitter; Says Acquittal of Daughter-In-Law Who Husband Is a Disgrace". The New York Times. 1 December 1911. p. 5. Retrieved 2024-04-14.
- ^ "German American Indem. Co. v. State Mercantile Bank". vLex. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
- ^ "People ex rel. Eli v. Benson". vLex. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
- ^ "Denver Labor Bulletin October 28, 1916 — Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection". www.coloradohistoricnewspapers.org. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
- ^ "State of Colorado Elections Database » Candidate: Horace G. Benson". State of Colorado Elections Database. Retrieved 2024-04-15.
- ^ "Obituary for Horace G. Benson". Journal and Courier. 1922-01-31. p. 12. Retrieved 2024-04-15.