The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1905-04-04
J, A, MACON
IS ACCUSED
Cited to Appear Before
Supreme Court
April 10.

| J. Alfred Magoon, attorney, was for
maIly charged with professional i'm
proprieties, malpractice and gross mis-
conduct by Attorney General l.. An
drews at the opening of the April ses-
sion of the Supreme Court yesterday.
The information concluded with a
prayer that J. Alfred Magoon might
be cited to appear and answer the in
| formation at that session, or as soon
thereafter as counsel could be heard,
and if the charges were sustained that
their Honors would dismiss from the
roll of practitioners, suspend from
practice or otherwise deal with the
said J. Alfred Magoon as under the
pleadings and proof might be neces-
sary.
| The information was accompanied by
a report of the Attorney General rem
\ dered in compliance with an order of
the Supreme Court on February 25,
1905, referring to him for investigation
the complaint of Sidney NJ Ballou as
| to the conduct of Magoon. Following
a statement of the charges the Attor-
ney General relates that he Informed
| BaIlou and Magoon by letter of the
order and requested them to forward
to him any statement which they con-
sidered would bear upon the matter.
| Both responded the report states,
| land Mr.. Magoon filed a voluminous
brief covering not only citations from
| the records of the case of Dee VS..
Smith, but also outside matters which
/ tend or would seem to tend to explain
much that is in the record
| AS the matter was of SO serious a
nature, involving the reputation and
| honor of a we'll known practitioner of
the bar, the Attorney General had
spent considerable time in considering
I the documents thus submitted. He be-
leves that his position should be that
/ of an inquisitorial officer rather than
] a judicial one, therefore that his func-
ton should be to decide whether there
were sufficient grounds upon which to
base the charges filed, leaving the
court to decide who is to be believed
under conflicting statements and what
weight shall be given to the testimony
| offered on either side.''
| He had deputiZed Sidney NJ. Ballou
as Deputy Attorney General to present
| the matter before the court.
Chief Justice Frear, upon the report
and information, ordered a citation to
issue commanding j. Alfred Magoon
to appear before the court on April 10,
| 1905, at 10 a. M, and then and there
answer the information.
Briefly the specifications of the char
ipS fn1l
4, He was one of the attorneys for plain
tiffs in a suit brought by stockholders
of Kamalo Sugar Co. against Frank
| Hustace, John ]. Egan and Frank H.
Foster. A decision of the Supreme
Court on May 81, 1902, resulted in a
! decree against defendants jointly for
| S35, 900 cash with interest and costs,
and 5000 shares of paid up stock of
Kamalo Sugar Co. On execution out
of the Circuit Court, judgment was
| partly satisfied by the payment of SILL
951.57 and delivery of 52SS shares of
Kamalo paid up stock, both by defend
| ant Hustace.
| No further part of the judgment had
been paid by any of the judgment
| debtors up to July II, 1902, when Ma
COON while acting for the Judgment
creditors, accepted from Hustace $3.50
as a retaining fee in the matter of adj
vising him how he could escape from
! the full liability of the judgment and
in the matter of enforcing the remain
der of the judgment solely from the
property of defendants Egan and Fos-
ter. At the time of accepting the
$50 fee, the information says, Magoon
was the acting attorney of the judg-
ment creditors "and by such action
was guilty of gross professional mis-
conduct and impropriety.''
On or about July a. 1902, Magoon,
while acting as attorney for plaintiff
stockholders of Kamalo sugar Co. and
defendant Hustace, and knowing that
Hustace had property from which the
judgment could be settled in large
part, and that it was for the interest
of the kamalo stockholders to proceed
against the property of Hustace, ad-
vised Hustace to make a deed of all
of his property to some third party,
without adequate consideration, there
by 'hindering delaying and defrauding
his creditors the Kamalo stockhold-
ers as well as any other creditors that
Hustace might have. land complain
ant charges that said J. Alfred Ma
COON. by his conduct therein and his
advice TO said Frank Hustace. was
guilty of gross professional miscon-
duct and improperly, and was at
tempting to practice a fraud upon the
court and was defrauding his own CHI
ents and defeating the ends of JUS
tice."
The advice was given under a claim
by Magoon that he would be able to
have the execution returned unsatis-
fed and would thereupon proceed
{ against Egan and Foster TO set aside
/ conveyances alleged to have been made
i by them in fraud OF their creditors.
! On or about Sept. 8. 1902, Hustace
made deeds of all his property to va
rious third persons, including a deed
of one parcel to W. II. Smith but that
thereafter MagOOn did not nrnceeti