Show ANSWER mm FILED BY MR JEROME District Attorney Denies All the I Charges Made by King HUGHES WILL ANNOUNCE DECISION AFTER READING DOCUMENT DOC MENT Albany N Y March 9 District At Attorney Attorney torney Jerome filed fIed today with Gov Governo Governo erno Hughes his answer to the tiie charges charge preferred against ag tim him by William F 1 King former president of the New NewYork NewYork York Tork Merchants association and a committee of ot minority stockholders of ot the Metropolitan Street Railway corn com compary par pary y in which the tho governor is asked to remove Mr Jerome Jeromo from front office off he heTh e eTh Th answer is a general denial of the charges Tho The governor said he would announce the procedure to be bo followed after he had examined the document Based on Assumptions The district attorneys answer de declares flares cares that the charges against him were based on assumptions which are purely gratuitous that in each in stane stae of ot alleged failure to prosecute the minter matter r did not as as a matter mattor of law a crime crimI or If Jt crime had ben bren committed It was by br reason Teason of ot one detect defect of ot evidence such as the lark lack of ot corroboration with Impossibility ty t to sustain a prosecution and that the he law Jaw and the obligations of his oath of ot office alike forbade him to institute prosecutions In the absence of evidence TO justify them Each of the twenty charges against him was taken up u by Jerome and answered In detail Campaign Fund With U ith reference to the charge which to Mr campaign fund which was in charge of ot Howard S Sans Gans ans who was one of his assistants Mr Jerome Jeronie states that save and ex except exert ert ept in a few fo instances he was not informed and did not know from whom the contributions to the expenses of ot his Campaign were made m de The answer sets forth also that the largest contributor to the fund so far as Mr lIr Jerome knows v was as Samuel who has been for fir a long time a personal friend of ot the district attorney Mr ns ers i s contribution was wa Attorney for Hyde The charges against Mr lIr Jerome al at alleged alleged that this contribution was Im mi Improper Improper proper on the ground that Mr Unter meyer meer was an attorney for James H Hyde formerly vice Ice president of the Equitable Life Assurance society To this the reply Is made that Mr lr Unter meyer at that time did not represent Mr Ir Hyde in criminal matters and that neither before nor since that time has hasl any evidence been produced to indi india la S a ate e that Mr Hyde H de had been guilty of any criminal act Denial is 19 made that Mr Gans Cans since he h has ha been an active practitioner of he be law has at any time received any favors layers or been shown any other or greater courtesies or consideration than Is shown to every practicing lawyer Denial Is made also that any favors have lave ever been asked or received of ot the district attorney from any corpora corporation corporation corporation tion Shipbuilding Scandal With reference to the charge against he the district attorney to the effect that th t the he had failed to bring prosecution for any alleged criminal conspiracy forthe for the flotation of or illegal worthless and fictitious fictitious fictitious securities of ot the United States Shipbuilding company In 1902 Mr Ir Jer Jerome Jerome Jerome ome replies While it was probable a crime had been committed and that certain per persons perSons sons Rons connected with the enterprise had been Jeen guilty of or procuring money by b false representations the legal evidence to prove frOe the falsity of or the representation s c could be secured only by b taking the tes tea of the witnesses in five dif different different ferent states Powerless to Prosecute Under the elementary criminal law Mr Ir Jerome says depositions when tak taken taken en In without Jurisdiction are not avail available available available able either cither for preliminary steps in a prosecution or upon the trial of a Criminal case casc and that he had no means of securing the attendance of witnesses whose testimonies would have been essential to make malie a case and that ho was therefore there tore powerless to tu prose prosecute prosecute cute ute In reply to the allegation that the district attorney had lost almost com corn completely completely the confidence of the tite people in inthe inthe the th county of ot New York Tork the answer disclaims any ability to judge of or this assertion but sets gets forth bearing upon the question some somo of the numerous let letters letters letters which he has been receiving since these thee charges have been bean filed contain containing containing ing lag assurances of ot confidence and ex of approval of ot his course In the list of ot letters referred to are communications from Joseph H Choate Choa e formerly ambassador to Great Britain General Benjamin F Tracy formerly secretary of the navy and Edward M 11 SHepard Slie ard |