Jess Smith - Role

Role

Smith came to Washington as an aide to Daugherty as U.S. Attorney General. He had a desk at the Department of Justice, but no official title. He nevertheless wielded considerable influence.

He was also Daugherty's roommate at Washington, D.C.'s Wardman Park Hotel. Daugherty's wife had remained behind in Columbus because of illness; Smith was divorced.

Smith's activities (it's said he sold bonded liquor to bootleggers, and was associated with a notorious house at 1625 K Street) became an embarrassment to Harding and Daugherty as the Teapot Dome scandal focused increased scrutiny on Harding and his supporters. Before leaving for Alaska, Harding told Daugherty he wanted Smith out of Washington.

On May 30, 1923, Smith died of a gunshot wound, and was found with a pistol at his side. His death was pronounced a suicide, but Alabama Senator James Thomas Heflin alleged otherwise, first at an investigatory hearing and later from the floor of the United States Senate.

"Nobody else knew what he knew and with him dead there was nobody to tell the story — so Jesse Smith was murdered," said Senator Heflin, initially.

He followed up two days later, in the Senate, quoting an Alabama bootlegger

You know Secretary Mellon loaned the Republican National Committee $5,000,000 in 1920. Only $3,000,000 has been repaid. There is a deficit of $2,000,000. Jess Smith was charged with getting that money. The plan was to have the liquor men and the breweries contribute to this fund....

"That is one of the reasons," shouted Senator Heflin, "why they wanted to get rid of Jess Smith."