The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-08-16
CLEARS DOCKET Of
LAST CRAFT CASE
Court Dismisses Those Charged
With Ruef and Schmitz
of Bribery.
ENDS LONG PROSECUTION
Delay in Bringing Gases to Trial
Assigned as Reason for Drop
ping Indictments.
ENDS LONG PROSECUTION

SAN FRANCISCO. Aug. 15.-The dis
trict court OF appeals OF the First dis
trict issued a peremptory writ of man.
Date today to compel Superior Judge Will
liam p. Lawlor to dismiss indictments
pending against Patrick Calhoun. Thorn -
wall Mutually, Tlrey L. Ford and Will
liam NJ Abbott. charged with bribing
the Ruef-Schmitz supervisors In connec-
tion with the United Railroads trolley
franchise
The decision ends the graft prosecution
financed by Rudolph Spreckels and prose :
cuted by Attorney Francis ]. Heney and
Deteotiye ars WILLIAM j. Burns; Immediately
delendants had right to a speedy trial.
and inasmuch as the case had been indefi-
nltely postponed by Judge Lawlor. owing
former Supervisor James L. Gallagher.
the court believed there was nothing else
10 do but TO order the dismissal of the
indictments. The facts made by the de-
tense were not disputed by the district
attorney.
The graft prosecutions we're started in
the fan OF 1906. while San Francisco was
Just beginning TO clear away the ashes Of
Is great catastrophe, All Of the 800 In
dictments. except. those in the French
restaurant scandal. which formed the
ABE Ruef. related TO alleged acts Of brib-
cry during the confused times following
the lire.
In March, 1907, Burns caught Supervi-
sors Lonergan. Boxton and Walsh In the
act OF accepting decoy bribe On their
confessions. others of the Schmitz board
were involved and several supervisors. on
the promise of immunity, turned state
evidence
The Indictment OF the four United Rail
roads officials was the eliminating act
OF the prosecution, There were fourteen
true bills agains each, and Ruef, turning
states evidence. said before the grand
jury that he had received 100000 from
Ford for putting through the trolley fran
chise ordinance. or this. he said the SUI
pervisors received SIS. 600 ne and Schmitz
dividing the rest, Later he repudiated his
confession.
Gallagher. who was acting mayor in
Schmitz's absence. confessed that he dis
trlbuted the sum among enough superyi-
sors to carry the bill. reserving SIS 900
commission for himself
Ford was the first TO go TO trial and
a disagreement resulted, In his next two
trails the jury voted acquittals
Ruef was tried on trolley Indictment
and found guilty in December. 1908, He
is now serving n fourteen-year term in
San Quentin penitentiary. 1t was during
court by an cx-convict who subsequently,
committed suicide in jail. Hiram w.
Johnson. now governor OF California. sue
ceeded heney as prosecutor.
Calhoun was the last to face Judge
Lawlor. but the jury was unable to agree
on a verdict,
Among the sensational incidents OF the
graft trails was the dynamitng OF the
Gallagher flats and the raid on the offices
OF the United Railroads. where Burns
found 1000 documents that he said were
copied from the reports OF his own men.
Rudolph Spreche.s was put on the stand
during the proceedings. and testified that
a fund OF s234.000 had been raised to as
sist Heney and Burns, to which he alone
contributed s175000.
When Charles F1ckert became district
attorney IN January. 1910, following He
ney's defeat for election. Gallagher left
the state. being seen on an Atlantic liner
and later traced TO British Columbia. On
the ground that he had no means TO con-
vict, F1ckert made a motion TO dismiss
the United Railroads indictments. which
was denied by Judge Lawlor,
Ford appeared at the next calling Of his
case and demanded either an immediate
trial or the quashlnR OF the charges. Judge
Lawlor continued to postpone trial over
Ford's protests. Proceedings for release
In habeas corpus were then began In the
supreme court of the state. but were de-
MED, with the suggestion that a writ of
mandate would be the proper remedy.