The San Francisco call., 1908-09-28
" "Loopholes of the Law" Is Subject of Article
Scathing Supreme and Appeal Courts

was to take notice of the attacks of these churchmen
of the the courts; but the good sense OF
the majority of the members prevented that associa
ton from adopting resolution that would have made
it ridiculous What pulpit attacks pecul-
iarly pertinent just now that whatever the attitude
of bar associations every lawyer knows in his heart
they are just and true; only that but the weight
conviction they carry the heavier by the fact that
these public criticisms of church and press have been
too long delayed Criticism of the courts has been
defended by both Lincoln and Jefferson 1t isn't
often that the pulpit hits home subject hidden
deep. in professional mystery with such unerring
precision
Connolly cites half score of other cases in his
article-cases utterly contrary to all principles
of justice to compare favorably with the
Sch1nitz in absurdty One OF these is an
Oregon case in which man found guilty OF beat
ing a woman with a strap in the public street
secured reversal on the ground that the indict-
ment against him was defective in that the strap
not described as "a cowhide, whip, stick or
like thing although definitely referred to as a
leather strap. In this the supreme court of
Oregon utterly dsregarded the fact that a re-
vover also employed
The typographical error of a single letter in the
spelling of name in the copy of a murder in
dictment delivered to defendant in an Alabama
case served as a ground for reversal there, al
though the original indictment contained the cor
rect spelling. Similar examples of absurdities in
troduced into murder, robbery, embezzlement
and graft cases are pointed out, several refer
ences being made to the St Louis graft cases In
general reference to all these cases the author
says:
The fact is that in country, in the effort
cast about the defendant every constitutional pro-
lection IN favor of innocence the have clothed
criminals with an aTmor plate which weapon of
justice can pierce, and have deprived the and
the people OF the effective of any weapon. They
tie arm of the state behind its back and compel
1t to wage fight on the criminal who only has
the use OF both hands, but is armed cap-a-pe.
Reverting again to 'the ominous case of Abe
Ruef," as he terms it, Connolly has this to say
The decision in the Schmitz case in California is
OF piece with the decisions of the Missouri
in the St. Louis Doodle 1t has given comfort
to the enemies of good government high UP and low
down. If it IS good law of the other courts
OF this union have made grievous errors of
judgment in the last 20 years. One of the faults
It found with the indictment that it did aege
that Eugene Schmtz mayor of San Francisco.
Under IS own statutes the courts could take judicial
notice of the accession to Office of the principal Off
GERS of government in the legislative executive and
judicial departments of the state-and San Francisco
IS county as well as a city. That same court has
held that the trial courts of California take judi
date. 1t now goes on record as declaring that the
very court which tries the criminal shall not take
notice OF the fact that he is the executive head OF
its own judicial baiwick.
In conclusion, Connolly flays criminal law as
it is being interpreted by the higher courts of the
country as "a Joke The conclusion of the ar
ticle is as follows:
We told that we should respect the courts;
but when read the words of one court hagellatng
another, which shall respect? Is the riot act
more becoming when read by higher to a lower
court than when read to convicted criminal before
these corporate decisions is like devious path in
thorny wood You can hide guilt anywhere in
the brush while bind justice gropes In the open road
1T is when the courts refuse to hold evenly and
exactly between all who before the bar that
they become degraded in the respect of men," said
United States Judge William H. Hunt of Montana
from the bench recently
One take the administration of the criminal
law in country humorousy if he takes it at all:
and yet-how Mr.. Dooey sat back and laughed about
the way the French tried the Dreyfuss easel