Los Angeles herald., 1892-09-14
He Was Too Ready in Smashing
Mr.. COenan's Head.
An Attempt to Ascertain the Status
of Justice King.
Andrew stephens Experience with San
Pedro Justice-Max Harris Found
'Guilty-A Damaging Cut-New
Cases-Notes.


deadly weapon upon Fred j. Coenan, a
music teacher.
Mr.. Hendricks is a thin-faced man,
with broad and clerical upper lip and
dogmatic-looking face, who has been q
local preacher OF the Methodist church,
South, for many years. but latterly has
not been actively engaged in his profess
sion. He is not a typical representative
OF muscular Christianity, being, in fact,
somewhat undersized and slender, but
he managed to infict a wound on Mr..
Coenan's head few months ago with a
Mandrake which knocked him dizzy, and
nearly cracked his ekull.
The case has travelled slowly from the
lower court, and the defendant has
seemed very confident that he would be
let off when he reached the superior
coart, but the jury yesterday knocked
his confidence into a cooked hat, and he
seemed hardly able to realize that he
had been found guilty of a felony.
The case is quite familiar to the read
ers of the HERALD. The defendant and
the music teacher lived near each other,
near the corner of Pearl and Pico
streets. Mr.. Coenan had been teaching
music to the children of E. FL. Kincaid,
and the latter owed | i'm money. He
gave Coenan the right to take hay be-
longing to him, and which was stored
in a barn at the rear of Hendricks
house. He finally sold the hay to Hen
bricks, and did not inform Coenan of
the sale. The latter went, as usual, to
the barn to get hay, when Hendricks
informed him he could not get any
more. dispute arose between them,
and Hendricks hit him with the hand
axe. He claimed that he was assaulted
first by Coenan, who hit him with his
fist, and that he was only projecting his
own property. After the presenta-
tion of the facts by a number OF
witnesses, however, the jury de-
cided that the minister was altogether
too quick with his axe. The sentence OF
the defendant was set for Friday morn
ing next, and he was allowed to 60 on
the bond of $1,000, which he had already
given, pending a motion for new trial.
is P. E. KING A JUSTICE OF THE PEACE?
Justice Van Dyke yesterday wrestled
with the momentous question, whether
or not the board of supervisors has leg
islated Justice P. E. King. OF Burbank,
out of Office or not by changing the
boundaries of Los Angeles township.
The matter came up on the hearing of
the writ of prohibition, asked for by H.
w. Daggett to prevent King from trying
the case of Newman vs.. Daggett in
court which he is trying to open in Los
Angeles city. Justice King was repre-
sented by @. G. Stephens and Mr.. New
man bysD. *. Trask. The attorneys
presented their views of the matter, and
cited a number of authorities on the in
teresting questions involved, after which
the court took the application for writ
under adyisement.
Both attorneys stated that the ques-
tion was involved in considerable doubt,
and Mr. Trask was frank enough to ad-
NIT that while, at first, he was quite
clear about the matter, he found, on in
vestigation, that he had become in
volved in a maze of doubt, which he
would leave the court to unravel. Mr..
Stephens smiled one of his most be-
witching smiles while the opposing
counsel was furnishing him with ammu-
milton, and Justice King plucked up
heart and assumed martyred express
sion, while Mr.. Trask was, seemingly,
arguing on both sides of the que stion
under argument.
Mr.. Trask followed pretty closely the
points briefly outlined by the HERALD
several days ago, upon the proposition
that the board of supervisors had legis-
lated King out OF Office by taking into
Los Angeles city township the outlying
precinct in which he was elected justice
of the peace. He quoted the various
provisions OF the statutes governing the
changing of township boundaries and
the appointment of justices of the peace
where vacancies are made, and con-
tended for two propositions. One of
them was that the action of the sdper-
yisors could not take effect until the
next general election, which is the posi-
ton King himself takes, and the other
is that the board has created new
township by the consolidation of Los
Angeles city township and Los Angeles
township. Ii the court held, he said,
that new township has been created,
King is ousted from Office, and the ap-
pointment OF new justice is correct.
Mr.. Stephens took advantage of the
doubts expressed by Mr.. Trask, and
claimed that the weight of authorities
is in favor of the theory that Justice
King holds until next January. He
claimed that justice Of the peace is a
constitutional officer and cannot be
legislated out OF Office by the supervis-
ors, however anxious they may be to re-
legate Mr.. King to the shades of private
life. He admitted that the constitution
does not fix the term of Office of justice
of the peace, but argued that by virtue
of several provisions of the constitution
his contention was correct. The out
come of the case will be awaited with
much interest.
SAN PEDRO JUSTICE.
A hearing upon a writ of habeas
corpus, involving the honor of Justice
B. G. Sweet, of Wilmington township,
was had before Judge Clark yesterday.
A previous application for writ was
made before Judge Smith by the COM
plainant, sailor named Andrew
Stephen, who was confined in the
county Jail, under a six months SEN
tence, by the justice. This application
was heard by Judge Smith about the
middle of August, and the prisoner was
remanded to Jail. He tried again, and
Judge CLARK released him.
The application set forth that Andrew
Stephen was charged April 26, 1892, in B.
G. Sweets court, at Wilmington town
ship, with being vagrant. He was
arraigned April %, pleaded not guilty,
and furnished 500 bail.
Thereafter he was approached by JUS
a., c,roo+ Of difrarant tin,ac bofora fha