Ex Parte Ruef

HALL, J.

The petitioner, Abraham Ruef, asks the court to admit him to bail upon divers indictments now pending against him in the superior court of the city and county of San Francisco. Bail has been fixed upon each charge by order of the superior court, so that the proceeding before us is in effect an application for a reduction of the bail heretofore fixed by the court in which the indictments are pending.

There are now pending one hundred and sixteen indictments against petitioner, in each of which he is charged with bribing a member of the board of supervisors of the city and county of San Francisco. The bail was fixed by the superior court at the sum of $10,000 upon each charge, save as to indictments designated as Nos. 1184 to 1192, inclusive, upon which the bail was fixed at $5,000 upon each charge.

In his affidavit petitioner sets up that thirty-seven of the indictments are duplicates, or reindictments of petitioner for offenses charged in other of the indictments. The reindictments are those designated by the numbers 810 to 823, both numbers inclusive, 841 to 854, both numbers inclusive, and 1184 to 1192, both numbers inclusive. This was not denied by the district attorney, although his attention was specially called to the matter at the hearing before this court, and we have, therefore, accepted this statement as- the truth.

Petitioner claims that the bail is excessive, and alleges that he cannot give it.

By the express provision of the constitution of this state all persons shall be bailable, except for capital offenses, when the proof is evident or the presumption great, and excessive

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bail shall not be required. Bail is not to be deemed excessive, however, simply because the particular person under indictment cannot give the bail required. Bail should not be exacted for the purpose of .punishing a person charged with crime, for no man is punishable for a felony except on his plea of guilty, or upon conviction by a jury of his peers. Bail is exacted for the purpose of securing the attendance of the defendant upon court at all times when his attendance may be lawfully required, and his rendering himself in execution of any judgment that may be pronounced • against him.