The deputy should have charged Mary's brother with witness intimidation when he threatened the life of the witness by saying "We heard what you said, Mr. Hardner and, if you don't say it again so everybody can hear, you won't live to get off that witness chair." That's a felony.
John Hardner, the witness who saw the man and woman in the buggy prior to Mary's death, lied when he said that he saw Little Joe's gun tied down to his left leg as the buggy rounded the curve. The gun worn by the man in the buggy was never visible to Hardner at any time.