Abe Ruef

Abraham Ruef (September 2, 1864 – February 29, 1936) was an American lawyer and politician. He gained notoriety as the corrupt political boss behind the administration of Mayor Eugene Schmitz of San Francisco during the period before and after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

Education and influences

Ruef was born Abraham Rueff of parents from a French–Jewish background. He was a bright student and, when barely fourteen, began studying at the University of California, Berkeley, majoring in classical studies. While attending the university, he developed an interest in fighting the rampant corruption that was endemic to local and national politics at the time. With some fellow students, he formed the "Municipal Reform League". He corresponded with like-minded individuals across the nation, including Theodore Roosevelt. At 18, Ruef graduated with the highest honors,

California was a center of corruption at the time, influenced by the Southern Pacific Railroad, which controlled both political parties in the state. They and other well-funded interest groups and individuals used their economic power and influence to form trusts and monopolies that guaranteed them power. Many of these wealthy and powerful people lived in San Francisco and, when necessary, could reinforce their hold on power through corrupt politicians and city bosses.

Controls city politics

The 1905 election was the first time voting machines were used, which permitted the voter to cast the entire Union Labor ticket. Mayor Schmitz formed the extra-legal Committee of Fifty to expedite repairs, and Ruef was not invited, but he showed up anyway at Franklin Hall where the committee met.

On May 22, 1906, the day after an overhead trolley ordinance was passed by city supervisors, the United Railroads President Patrick Calhoun wired $200,000 to Calhoun's credit at the United States Mint in San Francisco. Two days later, Tirey L. Ford representing Patrick Calhoun and United Railroads brought to the mint a written order from Calhoun to pay Ford $50,000 of the $200,000. On July 31, 1906, Ford withdrew another $50,000, and the remainder of $100,000 on August 23. He passed the money on to Ruef who used this money to pay Supervisor James L. Gallagher in two installments, one of $45,000 in late July and another of $40,000 in late August. He also paid Mayor Schmitz a total of $50,000.

Since "there wasn't a desk in the hall for Ruef, he accepted an offer to share a corner of the Mayor's desk." He became chairman of the Subcommittee on Relocating the Chinese and told the other members that "the Chinese must not be allowed to return to the desirable area that Chinatown occupied."

On December 6, 1906, Ruef and Schmitz were arraigned in court. "As the indictments were read out by the clerk, Ruef made clear his disdain for the proceedings by standing with his back to the judge." At the time of his trial, Ruef occupied offices in The Columbus Tower, in North Beach. In February 1907, Ruef pleaded not guilty. On March 18, 1907, all of the supervisors confessed before a grand jury to "receiving money from Ruef in connection with the Home Telephone, overhead trolley, prize fight monopoly, and gas rates deals." In exchange, "they were promised complete immunity and would not be forced to resign their offices. The grand jury then returned 65 indictments against Ruef for bribery of the supervisors."

After the supervisors' admissions, Ruef reached an agreement with the prosecution that he'd confess and receive immunity from most of the charges. On May 15, 1907, Ruef pleaded guilty and the next day testified before a grand jury, incriminating Schmitz. This led to Schmitz' conviction and removal from the mayor's office on June 13, 1907. Ruef's trial ended on December 10, 1908, with a verdict of guilty and the maximum sentence for bribery: 14 years in San Quentin. He spent a year at the county jail awaiting his appeal. In December 1909, he was released on bond of $600,000.

Release from prison

In November 1910, Ruef's conviction and sentence were upheld. On March 1, 1911, he entered San Quentin Penitentiary. But the businessmen and other politicians who benefited from the graft and corruption escaped punishment. Ruef was the only one jailed. Newspaper editor Older, formerly Ruef's most virulent opponent, became convinced that antisemitism may have played a role in who was punished and who was not. Older corresponded with Ruef in prison and began to campaign through his newspaper for Ruef's release. Older felt that more of the people who took part in the corruption ought to be brought to justice. He paid Ruef over the next year to write a serialized account of his political career in the San Francisco Evening Bulletin, revealing the vast corruption underpinning the city.

In 1912, Ruef was called as a witness at the new trial of ex-Mayor Schmitz, but Ruef refused to testify. Later in 1912, Ruef wrote his memoirs, which were published in the San Francisco Evening Bulletin in almost daily installments over several months, finishing at the point where the graft investigation began. On August 23, 1915, having served just over four and a half of his fourteen-year sentence, Ruef was released. He was not allowed to resume his legal practice. He had been worth over a million dollars before he went to prison but died bankrupt. He died in San Francisco on February 29, 1936.

Caricature gallery