The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-08-05
CASE AGAINST
TOM MOONEY
IS CRUMDL|NG
Woman Witness for State
Boosters Defense by
Rambling Tale.
OFFERS BILLINGS ALIBI
Contradictions in Evidence
Leave Court Justices in
Dizzy State.
BY MAX STERN
Tlmea stan Cofrsspoudest


SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 5.-The
erumbling structure of the Fickert
prosecution Of Mooney and Billings
appeared doomed today as the
stories Of the second states witness.
Estelle Smith, we're being battered
into a tangle of contradictions by
the ex-laborites' lawyers, at the SUI
preme court pardon rehearing.
Under fire of MONEYS counsel,
Frank Walsh, today Miss Smith was
in a fair way to leave the stand as
completely discredited as John Mac
Donald. Her rambling accounts Of
what she had read, heard, or seen
OF the 14-year-old case, have left the
seven judges in a dizzy state.
It no longer was a case Of having
TO choose between the incompatible
stories Of the two states witnesses,
Macdonald and Miss Smith. It be-
came impossible to believe Miss
Smiths story and still have shred
of faith that either Mooney or Bill
lings are guilty.
Offered Large Sum
Miss Smith has refused to i'm
plicate Mooney at all. She has,
sworn twice that Frank Oman
offered her a sum 'in five figures"
If she would say she had seen
Mooney at her dental Office, the
supposed rendezvous Of the
''dynamiters."
And at the end of Mondays
session her story had left Billings
where the clocks had placed Mooney
and his wife-on top Of a building
at or about the time of the 2:06 eX-
plosion. The clocks placed the
MONEYS on the Eiler building roof
at 2:04. Miss Smiths story left
Billings either inside or on top of
the same building at that time.
Furthermore, it had sent away the
only means of locomotion that by
the widest stretch of imagination
could have carried him in time to
the scene Of the crime three
quarters of a mile down the street,
q Ford car.
Auto Moved Away
She testified that Billings was IN
the building after she had waved
the towel from her window to
Mayor Rolph. The street clock
shows that to be 2:51. She said that
the auto in the street below had
been moved away by the police be-
fore Rolph arrived. The pictures
corroborate that statement. Bill
ings, she said, had told her in
confession" he made to her from
his jail cell that he had gone on
her roof to fill his syringeS witA
acid to squirt on autos.
The dirty brown suit case. that
Macdonald saw at the explosion
scene she described as a small dark
affair that weighed forty pounds
and looked like a doctors case Bill
ings told her it contained acid bots
ties and she believed it did. She ad-
ded thai Fremont Older, local editor
was present when Billings confessed
his sabotage.
Thus in two days, by the prosecu-
tons own witness, Billings has been
provided a brand new alibi and has
been turned from a dynamiter into
a Saboteur.
Mrs. Mooney in Court
Drama was furnished Monday by
two persons, Edwin Mckenzie. Bill
ings' lawyer. and Mrs Rena Mooney.
Although McKenzie'S brother and
aid in the preparation of the case,
was stricken Monday with apoplexy
and was taken TO a hospital in a
dangerous condition, the defense
lawyer continued his croSS-flre of
questions all day.
Mrs. Mooney came TO court dressed
IN the same old-fashioned black
and-white suit she wore on top of
the Eilers building, was introduced
to Miss Smith in the courtroom by
Mckenzie and then identified by
Miss Smith from the Eiler building
picture as Mrs. Mooney. She pre-
viously had sworn to have seen MIS-.
Mooney at the foot of the stairs of
her ONCE waving frantically for
Billings to come below.
The hearing is likely to continue
for a week or two. Justice Preston
says that the justices are willing
to continue indefinitely. Thus It
may come about that Mooney and
Billings viii be called from their
prison cells. Remaining TO testify
are Fremont Older, Ed Nockets and
the Macdonald Baltimore lawyers.