The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1913-05-30
man TIGER
Must ExpIate Ills Crimes On
The GalloWs
After Staying His Execution
For Five Years

| hOh buvO bO0uO
| San Francisco, Calf, May 29-After
staying his execution for more than
years, by availing himself OF every le.
gal technicaIity and every court, Jake
Oppenheimer. the criminal Of the cen.
tury," will be executed at Folsom pris.
on within the next two weeks unless
the governor intervenes and commutes
the sentence. Oppenheimer, whose
ferocity and murderous tendencies
have gained for him the name OF Man
Tiger" and have made him the terror
Of guards and prisoners alike, Is con-
sidered one Of the most remarkable
criminals ever known in this part Of
the country. He has q long record of
crime and ID known to have commit.
ted at least four murders.
0ppeaheimer began his career of
crime In this city many years ago.
when he was employed IS . messen.
ger boy for Q telegraph company. One
day he was discharged by the superin.
tendent and promptly revensed him.
self by shooting the superintendent.
Three years later he was sentenced to
so years Imprisonment for robbing
drug store. A man named Ross testi.
fed against him. Oppenheimer was
sent to Folsom and later, when Ross
was also sent to that institution for
some other crime, Oppenheimer await.
ed him at the prison gate and stabbed
him to death.
Some time after that Oppenheimer
murdered q guard named Mcdonald
at the prison. As punishment he was
placed in solitary confinement, but OBJ.
tanning q file and cutting his way out
he made murderous assault on fel.
low convict named John Wilson with
butcher knife. In 1901 the state leg
islature Of California had passed law
imposing death punishment upon any
prisoner who should make an assault
upon prison ofacial or fellow con.
vict. Under this law Oppenheimer was
tried in October, 1907, for bis attack
upon Wilson, who had died from the
effects Of the stab wounds. Open
heimer was found guilty and was SEN
tsnced to death. The execution was
set for June 6. 1908, but Oppe6heimer
through his counsel appealed and
fought his case through several courts
and finally the Supreme Court Of the
United States. Every court decided
against him and the U. 8. Supreme
Court upheld the validity Of the Cali.
fornia law Oppenheimer made another
attempt to save his life by obtaining
writ Of habeas corpus and bringing
his case before the United States Dis
trict Court upon the plea that the stat.
ute under which Oppenheimer had
been sentenced to death is retroactive
and contraverts section 10 of the Con-
stitution of the United States, which
forbids the passage OF ex post facto
criminal laws. This case also was dis.
missed and with that all resources Of
the law were exhausted.
While awaiting the decision Of the
courts in his efforts to save himself
from the gallows, Oppenheimer was
kept in strict confinement at the Fol-
| som prison. There he continued his
criminal career with unequalled cum
l'ning and ferocity. In company with
two other prisoners, J. W. Finley and
Francisco Quijada, Oppenheimer made
an attempt to break out OF the prison
at midnight on January 6. 1910, by
saving the bars Of their cell They
would have succeeded had not Night
Captain Quigmire detected them
sneaking along corridor. He called
several Of the guards and subdued the
prisoners.
Quijada, a half-breed Yaqui Indian,
had attached some OF the prison
guards several years before and had
also been sentenced to death under the
law Of 1901. He also appealed to the
courts and his case was pending at
the time when Oppenheimer began his
fight for his life. There was consider
able i'll feeling between the two pris-
oners from the very beginning and
their mutual hatred increased In the
course OF time. The climax came In
September of 1911, when one morning
Quijade challenged Oppenheimer to q
combat for life. while the prisoners
were permitted to exercise In the
corridor Of the prison. Oppenheimer
who had secretly prepared himself for
such an emergency, hung himself upon
the Indian and stabbed him to deskh
with . sharp piece Of steel which he
had picked up In the prison yard sew
eral months before and which he had