Los Angeles herald., 1907-06-06
Heney GrillS Mayor
in His Opening
Address
Police Commissioner
Tells of Restaurant
Deals
Prosecution Outlines Case and Calls
Witnesses to Prove that City's
Administration Got Big
Graft Money

By Associated Press.
SAN FRANCISCO, June 5.-The open
ing address for the prosecution by
Assistant District Attorney Heney, the
partial examination-in-ch chief of former
Police Commissioner Thomas Reagan,
the introduction as evidence Of a mass
of data from the minute books of the
police commission for the years 1904
1906 and the questioning in relation
thereto of the secretary of the commits
sion, Officer Charles F. Skully, were the
incidents that made up the first day
actual trial of Mayor Eugene e.
Schmitz for extortion.
Officer Skully will resume the witness
stand at the opening of court tomorrow
morning to further identify and con-
tribute police commission records. He
will be followed by Mr.. Reagan, who
will complete his testimony and then
be turned over to the defense for cross
examination.
No night sessions of the Schmitz trial
will be held. Judge Dunno hoped to
gain the consent of counsel to three
sessions daily, but neither Mr.. Heney
for the prosecution, nor Mr.. Campbell
for the defense were willing. They
said they needed the evenings foi
preparation and for rest. s-...s.
While this subject was under discus
sion just before adjournment this ait
ternoon Juror OMara spoke up:
why, your honor" he said, I'VE ever
got shook up in our beds last night
This reference to a midnight earth
quake shock provoked the crowd to
laughter.
It is said that the trial will take up
not less. and probably more, than two
weeks.
Heney Outlines Case
In his address to the jury on opening
the case for the prosecution Mr.. Heney
said:
Gentlemen of the jury, it is my duty
as assistant district attorney to out
line to you at this time what 1t IS the
prosecution expects to prove in this
case, to enable you to understand evil
dence that will be produced here and to
weigh one piece of evidence as against
another in arriving at a verdict.
Each one of you is now part or
the machinery of the law, sworn to
perform his duty as we are sworn to
perform ours-imparfially We expect
to prove that we are performing ours
in that way notwithstanding anything
that may have been said in the heat
side. You are to try the defendant
Schmitz, and him only, who stands
here accused jointly with Abraham
Ruef of the crime of eXtorting from
Joseph Malfanti the sum of $1175 un-
der the fear of a threat that he would
be deprived of his license to sell liquor
and his business be thereby injured If
he did not pay this sum.
1--WE expect to prove to this jury that
the defendant Schmitz in November,
1901 became the candidate of the Union
Labor party, then first created, for the
office of mayor of the city and county
of San Francisco That the convention
which nominated him was made up of
delegates from the different unions and
that they and the party they repre-
sented were acting Independently of
any advice by Ruef. We shall show
that sjchmitz sought and secured the
influence of Ruef, who had become his
friend, to aid him in securing his sec
ond nomination, and that Ruef sup
ported him and furnished him with
money and thereby won his confidence
and gratitude and became his adviser
politically.
Took Ruef as Adviser,
1--WE shall show that Schmitz in a
published letter and in published in
terviews announced that he owed much
of his political success to Ruef and
expected to be guided very largely by
Ruef's advice ding his stay in office.
1--WE expect to prove" said Mr.. Heney,
"that Schmitz and Ruef at this time
began a systematic operation of black
mail upon places that required police
protection; in other words, upon houses
of prostitution and saloons that had at
tachments contrary to law and OF such
character that if the law was strictly
enforced they could not run. We shall
prove that this system was worked by
Schmitz in suggesting at various times
to Commissioner Reagan to hold up
certain licenses; and we shall show you
that this hold-up for blackmail was
possible in the eyes of the conSpirators
through the fact that three votes were
necessary for the granting or renewal
of a license, and Commissioner Hutton
being openly and steadfastly opposed
to operation of vice places, the added
vote of Reagan was all that was nee
essary to block any license.
''Every liquor license had to be re-
newed every quarter"
Mr.. Heney described to the jury the
character and the floor arrangement of
the French restaurants in proof of
their necessity of police protection. He
recited at great length the allegations
of the prosecution as to the methods
used by the mayor and Ruef to intimi-
date the Erench restaurateurs and show