The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1913-12-23
AGEE IS EXONERATEO.
IN STATEMENT FROM.
LEAGUE OFFICERS
Every Dollar Was Elk
pended Under Direction of
Executive Committee"
EMPHATIC DENIAL OF
GRAND JURY CHARGES
Law Enforcement League Officers
Declare He Has Fully Accounted
For Every Cent Given Him.
Agee Declines to Talk

For Every Cent Given Him.
Agee Declines to Talk
Denying every allegation, suggestion
or insinuati0n made by the recen
grand jury against Walter c. Agee
chairman of the excise commission. Ir
reference to the misrepresentation oil
funds furnished by the Jefferson
County Law Enforcement league fol
the suppression of the Illegal sale oil
liquor, and expressing their utmost
confidence in Mr. Agee, the officials
of the league have issued statement
in which they emphatically deny any
misappropriation of funds and declare
that every dollar paid by the league
to Mr.. Agee has been accounted for.
They also state that after trying Of
ficial channels and private detective
agencies, the league importuned Mr.. Agee
to take charge of the situation and that
since he has had charge his actions
have been, and are now entirely sat
iEfactory to the Law Enforcement
league and that every dollar that he
has expended has had the sanction OF
the league. They further state thai
tho accusations made by the recent
grand jury are absolutely erroneous
and without foundation in fact.
Mr. Agee refused to make and state
ment last night on the grounds that he
was rot specifically charged with any
offense. and that the bill of complaint
had been filed on eX parte testimony.
He said that at the proper time he
would make a statement. His friends,
however, ask that judgment be srs-
pended until the merits of the matte,
be threshed out and the real facts oil
the grand jury's allegationy be made
known.
The statement OF the Law Enforce
ment league is as follows:
Statement by League
AT meeting of the executive COM
mittee of the jefferson County Law
Enforcement league, held IN the city of
Birmingham on December %, 1913, the
following yindication of Mr.. Agee was
unanimously adopted and approved:
TN November 1911, this league was
formed by men engaged in the liquor
business.
'sThe purpose and object of this
league is to bring about mutual good
will amongst its members, to overcome
any unjest prejudice and misrepresen-
tations aimed against the members of
this league: to encourage each member
to so conduct himself and his bust
ress, on so high a plane as to dsarm all
just criticism of himself or the business
in which he is engaged to assist in the
liquors and to otherwise cooperate
with the Officers and the public, who
desire us to demonstrate that the reg
ulated sale Of liquor by licensed deal
ers is the only practicable workable
and sane method of dealing with this
traffic
Having this in view. this organi-
zation raised a fund to be used in car
rying out its purposes 1t first sought.
through regular official channels, to
prevent the Illegal sale OF intoXicants.
Through this channel The association
failed in its efforts. To accomplish the
same end ii then established specially
paic detective department After thorough
trial, this plan was also unsatisfactory.
1t was then that the league, in open
meeting. asked Mr.. Walter c. Agee,
chairman of the excise commission of
Jefferson county, TO take charge of the
matter employ special detectives and
\ endeavor to carry out the objects of
l/the league.
Mr.. Agee was loath to accept the pc
sition. but was finally prevailed upon
by the league to do so, which he did
with the distinct understanding that
he would do so as an Individual and
not as chairman of the excise commits
sion One of the objects in taking
the matter out of the hands of the
league itself and placing it in the
hands of Mr.. Agee was to place same
in the hands of one who was famil-
lar with conditions in the entire
county
Actions Approved by Officers
Mr.. Agee, on taking charge of tie
matter employed detectives. with the
consent and approval of the officers OF
the league, and from time to time ex-
pended the money which he is charged
to have misappropriated in the payment
of these detectives and their expenses
Every payment that made by MI
Agee was approved by the officers of the
league, and he expended every cent Of
the money furnished by the league III
paying these detectives and their ex-
penses, and did not use one cent of the
same for his own purposes. We firmly
believe the accusations against him by
the late grand jury to the effect that he
misappropriated this fund.- or any part
thereof, are absolutely erroneous.
In July, 1913, Mr.. Agee himself re-
qCested the league to allow him to with
draw the detective force and to stop az.
propriating any money for the paymert
thereof, or for any other purpose so far
as he was acting for the association, on
the ground that the expenditure of the
money would be unwse and unnecessa ry
until the numerous cases which had been
tried In the lower court We're DISPOSED
of in the higher courts, he having brought
to trial and conviction in the recorder
court violators of the liquor law to the
number of at least 100, and had, through
forces under him, corrected numerous
attractions of the law and the rules OF
the excise commission.
THE charge made by the grand Jury
that Mr.. Agee had Incorporated o,
converted to his own use the money q,
this league, the undersigned most en-
phatically deny and the records show
every dollar was expended by the con-
sent and under the direction of its exec,t-
tive committee.
HERMAN HENTCHEL,
President.
H. ]. Meyer,
Vice President
f. L. SCHILLINGER,
Treasurer.
A. S. JOSEPH,
Secretary.
H. ]. BAUM.
Ex-secretary.
CHAMP YEARGIN.