Perjury Case Continues to Haunt Local Man
After escaping prison for an initial conviction, John Adam Schmidt faces a new federal inquiry into subornation of perjury.
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John Adam Schmidt, who is currently avoiding a six-year sentence at the U.S. penitentiary, will likely face a new charge in federal court. Having already been found guilty of perjury at the previous term of the federal court in Walla Walla, Schmidt now faces allegations of subornation of perjury. Three local men, Emil Sanderson, Arthur A. Hauerbach, and Henry Gottwig, have been summoned to appear before the federal grand jury in Seattle this Wednesday to provide testimony. Evidence from Schmidt’s earlier trial suggested he induced government witnesses to provide false testimony. Schmidt’s appeal of his initial conviction is scheduled to be heard in the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco next May.
“The evidence introduced at the trial of Schmidt tended to show that he had endeavored to induce the witnesses on the part of the government to swear falsely.”
Perjury and witness tampering remain significant hurdles in the federal justice system, though legal venues for appeals have centralized over the last century. The persistent legal scrutiny Schmidt faced highlights the era's focus on federal jurisdiction in early 20th-century Washington.
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