Labor: Jimmy & the Jury

Hard-eyed Teamster Boss Jimmy Hoffa seems to get into and out of hot water almost as regularly as a wash-and-wear shirt. He has been on trial in federal courts four times in the past six years, escaping with two acquittals and two hung juries. Last week fresh difficulties with the Feds descended upon Hoffa: a federal grand jury in Nashville, Tenn., indicted him on charges that he “did unlawfully, willfully and knowingly” conspire with six co-conspirators to influence members of a jury. The alleged jury tampering occurred while Hoffa was on trial in a federal court in Nashville last year. The charge against him then was that he and a Teamster crony had received $1,008,057 in illegal payments from a trucking company, through a truck-leasing firm nominally owned by their wives. Judge William E. Miller declared a mistrial when the jury failed to reach a verdict (TIME, Jan. 4). Afterward, Miller said there had been evidence of “illegal and improper attempts” to influence jurors, and he ordered a special grand jury investigation. In its indictment, the grand jury charged that Hoffa, through one co-conspirator or another, made these offers: — > To the son of a juror named Gratin Fields, $5,000 for himself and $5,000 for his father if the son would influence his father to vote for Hoffa’s acquittal. > To the husband of another jury member, Mrs. James M. Paschal, help in getting a promotion (he was a state highway patrolman) if he would persuade his wife to vote for acquittal. > To a prospective juror, James C. Tippens, $10,000 for an acquittal vote. In addition to these charges, Hoffa faces a possible retrial of the original Nashville case, plus a separate trial in a federal court in Florida on charges of fraud and conspiracy in connection with a Teamster real estate venture. Despite these legal troubles, Hoffa still retains a firm grip on the steering wheel of his huge Teamsters Union. Only two weeks ago, he won a decisive victory over insurgent Teamsters in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland and Delaware. A National Labor Relations Board election gave Teamsters in the four-state region a choice between Hoffa’s union and a rival union set up by the rebels. Although the insurgents were actively supported by the A.F.L.-C.I.O., the Teamsters voted by a two-to-one margin to stick with Hoffa.