Los Angeles herald., 1910-10-15
LAW WAS BROKEN,
WOOLWINE STATES
Criticism of FrederiCkS Includes
Sharp References to Matter
of County Bills
RECORDS IN CIVIL ACTIONS
Explanation of Secret Suppress
sion of Grand Jury Inquiries
Interests Large Audience
RECORDS IN CIVIL ACTIONS
Continued from Page One,


records of private civil cases in the
office of the county clerk searched
for the period of four years last
past, and it disclosed that the dis
trict attorney and his deputies have
during that time appeared as at
torneys for private parties in 395
civil cases. A conservative estl-
mate of the amount of time con-
sumed in these cases, in other
words, the amount of time so en-
bezzled from the public, will reach
an average of not less than three
days to a case, when we take into
consideration the time employed in
consultation with clients and wit
nesses, the preparation Of the pa
pers, and the time consumed in
the courts in the trial of such
matters.
WASTE OF PUBLIC's TIME
In other words, there has been
consumed in the 395 cases not fewer
than 1185 days of the peoples time,
for which Mr.. Fredericks and these
deputies were paid, and for which
they rendered no service. OF course
this is computed upon the amount
of time taken from the public in the
aggregate Dy MI. fISu0lAChS anu
his deputies, which would mean that
the public was paying for the time
of one of such men for the period
of three years and ninety days, for
which not one dollar of service was
rendered to the public. In addition,
it should be remembered, further,
that the time taken in the prepara-
tion and the trial of private cases
by attorneys is only a very small
portion of the entire time consumed
by attorneys sin general law prac-
tice. There are numerous matters
upon which attorneys are employed
in which there is no litigation, and
of which the courts will furnish no
record, such as legal advice, prepa-
ration of contracts, and office prac-
tice of every other nature In addi-
tion to the enormous amount of
time shown by the records to have
been embezzled by Mr.. Fredericks
and his deputies from the public,
it never can be known as to how
much additional time was taken in
such private office practice.
There is another phase of this
matter that should be of great in
terest to the taxpayers. 1t is COM
mon knowledge that the stenog-
raphers paid by the county have
been used by the district attorney
and his deputies in this great vol
ume of private practice, to say moth
ing of the stationery of the county
used in manyrof such matters.
DELUGE OF PRIVATE PRACTICE
Now, during all this deluge of
private practice engaged in by Mr..
Fredericks and deputies, prisoners
have languished in Jail awaiting the
pleasure of these county officials
who have been thus otherwise en-
gagged; and during this four years
to which / have made reference the
number of deputies under Mr.. Fred
ericks has by various manipula
tions grown from eleven to twenty
four. The estimate made as to the
number of cases actually filed in the
courts by these officials is not a
matter of conjecture, but the speak
er is now in possession of the num-
bers of, such cases, the particular
kind of cases, and the official en-
ployed in such cases.
The evils that may result from
this taking of the peoples time for
such purposes are manifold. Liti-
cation in the courts often discloses
various kinds of crime; among 9TH
er things, perjury is not at all un-
common, and if perjury should oc-
cur in any of these various matters,
it is not to be supposed that the dis
trict attorney and his deputies,
having been engaged as private at
torneys for clients in such cases,
would take the trouble to prosecute
those guilty of such crimes. Even if
nesses for the other side, the rela-
tion of the district attorney and his
deputies to such cases in their priA
vate capacity would be such as to
render prosecution exceedingly en-
barrassing, and by reason of their
relation to the case exceedingly un-
likely. There are further complica-
tions that might arise, such as the
King will case, wherein the district
attorney yielded to the temptation
wholly to disregard his oath of Of
flee and suppress the prosecution of
the forgers Of two separate wills. In
other words, covered up and sup
pressed the prosecution upon two
felonies so that he might enrich
himself to the amount of $4,000 in
property and money belonging to
the estate Of the dead Michael II.
King.
PLEDGES DUTY 10 PUBLIC
Now, right at this point l mean to
make a pledge to the public that
have always intended to make since
entering this contest, that, If elected
to the office of district attorney, my
entire time, and that of my depu-
ties, shall be taken up in the trans
action of the public business, and
that | shall not during my term of
office take a private case of any ma
ture, nor shall l allow any deputy
in the office to take any such case.
In other words, / shall take the
ground, If elected, that the public Is
entitled not only to the best ener-
giles of myself and deputies, but that
the entire time of myself and depu-
ties will be the property of the cit
liens and taxpayers of Los Ange-
les county, and that a public officer
has no more right to embezzle such
time than he has to embezzle the
funds of the public.
Mr.. Woolwine then went into
engthy discussion of the suppressio
If the grand jury investigation of tn
Harper administration, the inactivit
If Mr.. Fredercks in the river bed stea
he appointment of Percy Harmon, on
IF the councilmen who betrayed tn
public upon that occasion, to be a dep
Ity in his office; the attempted bon
steal, and the recent furniture seanda
md stated that in all such cases TN
must have known tina
they would have immunity in advance
)r such outrageous conduct would nc
nave happened.