Sierra County CA Archives History - Books .....The Butler-Moffat Tragedy 1882
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Joy Fisher sdgenweb@gmail.com January 20, 2006, 11:09 pm

Book Title: Illustrated History Of Plumas, Lassen & Sierra Counties

THE BUTLER-MOFFAT TRAGEDY.

   The killing of Robert Moffat at Downieville, in the fall of 1855, occasioned
great excitement at the time, and though David Butler, the murderer, met a
retributive fate in an adjoining county, the matter properly belongs to the
criminal annals of Sierra county. On the twenty-seventh of September, 1857,
Robert Moffat arrived in Downieville, bringing with him a lot of gold-dust from
the Buttes mine. An attempt to rob him on his way thither had been threatened,
but the discovery of the plot being made in time, the gang of robbers had
refrained from making any demonstrations of the kind. That evening, Moffat met a
Mexican in the card-room of Craycroft's saloon, and accused him of being at the
head of the band of robbers. The Mexican denied the charge, when Butler stepped
up, saying that the Mexican was not the man for whom the remarks were intended.
Moffat insisted that he meant what he said, which resulted in hard words and
threats between them, when Butler went away to arm himself. The conversation was
continued between Moffat and the Mexican. Presently Butler returned, with a
pistol belted to his side. Moffat asked Butler what he was looking at, who
answered: "I am looking at you, because I have nothing else to do." Moffat then
said he wished to have nothing to do with such a man. Upon this, Butler drew his
pistol and struck at Moffat two or three times; then he stepped back, leveled
his weapon, and fired, the ball taking effect in Moffat's right side, from the
effects of which he died in twenty-four hours. Butler escaped over the hill to
the west by the aid of his friends, the gamblers of the place, who led the
excited crowd up the river, shouting, "Catch him! Shoot him!" giving the
fugitive a chance for his life, which he improved to advantage. Butler fled to
Oregon. The county offered a large reward for his arrest, and it was not until a
year and a half afterwards that he was caught, under an assumed name. Butler was
brought down on a steamer from Portland to San Francisco. The mysterious
disappearance of the first mate on the voyage led to the belief that Butler, out
of pure devilishness, had pitched him overboard. Sheriff Ford expended $1,500
dollars in catching his man. The case against Butler was opened in the district
court March 30, 1857; he was defended by Colonel E. D. Baker. The case continued
until the next term, and then, the feeling being so strong against the murderer,
he obtained a change of venue to Nevada county. There he was defended by
attorneys Stewart and Sargent, and prosecuted by the district attorneys of
Nevada and Sierra counties, assisted by William S. Spear of Downieville. The
jury were out fifteen minutes, when they returned a verdict of guilty. The case
was appealed to the supreme court no change was ordered. Butler was sentenced to
be hung on the eleventh of December, 1857, but was respited by Governor Johnson
till February 26, 1858, when he was executed at Nevada City.


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:

Illustrated History of Plumas, Lassen & Sierra Counties

San Francisco: Fariss & Smith
(1882)

File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ca/sierra/history/1882/illustra/butlermo305ms.txt

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