Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1906-09-30
BAR OFFERS TWO REWARDS
Five Hundred Dollars Each for JurJ
Bribery and Perjury.
DISCUSSION BECOMES WARN At TIMES
Personal AlIusions Concerning Meth
DDS of Members of the Bar of
Decidedly UneompIimentary
Character.


Rewards OF $500 for evidence leading to .
conviction for jury tampering and Of an
equal amount for a conviction for perjury
were offered by the Omaha Bar ASSOCIATE ton
at a special meeting held last night in the
Commercial club rooms. The action was
taken after a joint debate OF some heat
between John L. Webster of the street car
company on one side and a score Of other
lawyers on the other, and a deluge of sub
stitute motions and amendments which
threatened TO inundate the meeting The
outcome was something in the nature OF
compromise, the advocates of a $1,000
reward for jury bribing alone accepting the
suggestion of Mr. Webster and dividing the
amount into two parts, half OF which Is
to go for the prevention Of perjured testi-
mony.
The general question Of offering a reward
was discussed informally after the meeting
had been called to order by President
Baldrige. After "A. c. wakeley, T. ]. Ma
honey, James c. Kinsler and r. L. Weaver
had spoken in favor OF the plan. Mr.. Web
ster took the floor and declared the pro-
posal was a reflection on every juror In the
country and an advertisement 70 the world
that the bar had no confidence in the
jurors He cited cases which had been
WllHOul TeSull anu Nti61 ue-
clared the Bar association should look to
certain evils existing within the ranks of
the bar. such as the practice Of so-called
Ambulance chasing" He thought the as
ISOLATION had just as good cause to offer
a reward for the detection Of perjury
This precipitated a somewhat heated dis
cussion in which a number of attorneys
took shots at the alleged tactics of at
torneys and agents for corporations in set
Ting claims. Several speakers asserted the
claim agent evil was greater than the
Ambulance chaser" evil.
Results in Compromise.
The discussion was taken up by John o.
Yeiser, w. A. De Bord, T. ]. Mahoney,
George w. Cooper, Frank Brogan, Carl
! Wright and a number of others Mr..
Webster sought to include in the motion to
OFFER $1,000 reward for evidence of jury
| tampering a similar reward for evidence OF
| perjury and of Ambulance chasing by
members of the association. He finally
moved as a substitute that the association
| raise as much money as possible for the
correction OF evils in the judiciary and then
| apportion It among the three named. This
was lost and the original motion altered
to include both jury tampering and per-
! jury was passed. The executive committee
|
| for the purpose.
Then Mr.. Webster moved that It be the
sense of the association that Ambulance
chasing" meet with the condemnation of the
association. Mr.. Mahoney took a covert
shot at corporation claim agents by offer
ing an amendment defining the term am
bulance chaser" to include agents or repre-
| sentatives of any attorney or corporation
who seeks to use undue means on sick or
injured persons in effecting a settlement
of claims. This was accepted by Mr.. Web
ster and passed without a dissenting vote.
The association voted to invite the State
Bar association to hold its annual meet
! ing November % and q in Omaha. F. A
Brogan reported that the executive COM
mittee Of the association had decided on
Omaha and wanted the cooperation of the
| local association. Some speakers Of prom
inence will be in attendance.