Frank
Egan at the time of his incarceration
|
Frank
Egan when he was released from prison
25 years
later.
|
Frank Egan was San Francisco's first elected
public defender, elected in 1921. Still the public defender in l932,
Egan was charged with first degree murder. In addition to his work
as the public defender, Egan was the drafter and executor of the
wills of several private clients. One such client, Mrs. Jessie
Hughes, was found dead in the street, an apparent victim of a
hit-and-run accident. Subsequent investigation revealed that Egan
had conspired with two ex-con former clients who held Mrs. Hughes
down in a garage, ran over her several times with a car and then
dumped her body in the street. Egan was the sole beneficiary of Mrs.
Hughes' will.
Egan was jailed, removed from office and tried
for capital murder. His attorney, Vincent Hallinan, managed to raise
enough doubt about premeditation to avoid the gallows, but Egan was
convicted of first degree murder and served 25 years in state
prison.
Photos courtesy of San Francisco History Center, San
Francisco Public
Library. |