Los Angeles herald., 1910-06-02
MAY ENJO|N JUDGE
FROM TRYING SING
Attorneys for Young Chinese Ask
Alternative Writ of Prohi-
btion Against Wilbur
SLAVE TRAFFIC REVEALED
Tong War Threatened if 0rientaIS
Testify Against Country
man Now on Trial
SLAVE TRAFFIC REVEALED

Startling events ueNelOptu III tllO w
tention of Mills Sing, Chinese hlgh
school boy 16 years old, held for CON
tributing to the delinquency of Abbie
Sheehan, in the superior court yester-
day, when Judge Curtis d. Wilbur was
cited to appear before Presiding Justlce
Allen OF the appellate court next Mon
day morning to show cause why an
alternative writ of prohibition should
not be issued to prevent a preliminary
hearing of the charges against the
Chinese, which was to have taken place
this morning in department eight.
The action of the appellate court
caused a sensation in view of the fact
that the order is one that is seldom
exerted by the former, and the citation
followed a series of dismisSalS and ar
rests of the Chinese boy which have
made the superior court appear like a
Switchboard for the handling of legal
technicalities.
The citation against Judge Wilbur
was made after n petition had been
submitted to Justice Allen by Attor-
rieys Paul Schenck and George l.. Nc
Keeby, who declared that when Judge
Wilbur held Sing for hearing he was
not sitting as a committing magistrate,
and was therefore not acting within his
Jurisdiction. The attorneys cited the
law in which it is declared that all
misdeameanors committed in cities of
the first class are within the exclusive
jurisdiction of the police and city JUS
tice courts.
Attorneys for the defendant also held
that there is 10 provision in the law
authorizing a judge of the superior
court or Juvenile court, or any other
magistrate, to sit as a committing mag
istratc for the purpose of conducting
preliminary examination OF mlsde-
meanor charges.
JUDGE WILBUR CITED
On the legal points being presented
to him, Justice Allen cited Judge Will
bur to appear and explain under what
ruling he will hold the preliminary ex-
animation Of Mills Sing, and the un-
usual developments in the case promise
a sensation in legal circles.
Another phase of the arrest of Sing
and efforts to secure corroborative evil
dence against him is that prominent
member of a Chinese society in San
Francisco visited local Chinese a few
days ago and declared that If any of
his countrymen gave evidence against
Sing it would result in a tong war
among the orientals which would
spread to cities all over the coast
In the meantime strenuous efforts
have been made by the authorities to
find Abbie Sheehan, who has been miss
ing for several months. She Is a pretty
girl Of II. and Sing was first arrested
when found living with her in october.
hidden by Chinese friends of the
prisoner and 1t is feared that she has
met with foul play in the effort to de-
stroy all evidence against the youthful
prisoner.
When Sing was arrested last October,
he was placed on probation by Judge
Wilbur pending a hearing, which was
set for May 6. This hearing never
took place and early in May of this
year, the precocious Chinese youth was
arrested DIN the charge of contributing
to the delinquency of Abbie Sheehan,
a minor child. Following his arrest it
was discovered that Sing had secured
Edith Curtis, another white girl under
eighteen years Of age, and was con-
Quoting a white slave traffic among
the Chinese in the city.
Only the statement Of Edith Curtis
could be secured against Mills Sing.
She declared ne and other Chinese had
held her a prisoner at the Chinese mis-
sion in this city against her Will, and
that Sing brought numerous country
ben to visit her In the place and col
1ected considerable money from them.
No corroboratiVe Evidence could be Sc
cured against Sing for the good reason
that about twenty Chinese disappeared
from the city Immediately after his
arrest. 1t was then that the old Of
Tense against Abble Sheehan was sworn
to and he has been held on it since.
Attorneys for Sing have secured his
dismissal from custody five times on
technicalities since he was first arrest
ed. Each time another charge present
ed in different form secured his ar
rest and UP to date the Chinese youth
mas been arrested seven times, prac-
tically for the same charge, presented
in different form.
When first arrested in May Sing
was taken to the juvenile court and
after a hearing in which Edith Curtis
testified against him he was held to
Justice Summerfield's court. 1t was
thought the ordinary course against
him would be followed and that he
would be held to answer In the super
ior court and tried.
Faulty information resulted IN his
dismissal, but Probation officer Nc
Laughlin arrested him again on an
other charge of mistreating Abbie Shee-
han. There was some flaw in the form
of the complaint as made out in the
district attorneys office and the Chi
nese was again dismissed. After these
proceedings were repeated until the
dismissals and arrests began to grow
nonotoncus, the case was again
brought UP before Judge Wilbur and
yesterday morning Attorneys Schneck
and McKeeby presented objections to
Judge Wilbur hearing the charges
against Sing.
When the attorneys finished their
objections, which were on the ground
that he had no jurisdiction in the case,
Judge Wilbur set the hearing of Sing
for this morning at 10 o'clock in de-
partment eight. When the attorneys
attempted to argue with him. he shut
them up and made an order of commit
ment against Sing.
Schencl1 and McKeeby then hurried
to the appellate court and secured the
citation.
The case is said to be unprecedent-
ed in the legal history of the county,
and the guilt or innocence of Mills
Sing, in regard to the charges that he
has mistreated white girls and made
white slaves of them, appears to bear
a small part in the proceedings, which
have taken on the aspect of a legal
battle between attorneys and judges.
DANISH CABINET REMAINS