Murder of Bill Mason
William Haywood "Bill" Mason was a radio journalist for KBKI-AM in Alice, Texas. On July 29, 1949, he was murdered by Jim Wells county deputy sheriff Sam Smithwick, after he had heard Mason referring to him in his daily radio broadcast as the owner of a 'dime-a-dance-palace'.
Bill Mason
William Haywood Mason was born on January 2, 1897 in Minneapolis, Minnesota to Clarence Haywood Mason, a manager for the Northwestern Telephone Exchange, and Clara Olmstead nee. Mason grew up in Minneapolis and graduated from Minneapolis North High School in 1916. After graduation, he enlisted in the Army, serving with the 135th Infantry during World War I. After returning home, he got his first job as a reporter in December 1919, working for the Minneapolis Journal. By 1923, he had moved to the west coast, where he worked for newspapers in Oakland and San Francisco. While living in California, he also worked as an investigator for Earl Warren, when he was the district attorney for Alameda county. In 1933, Mason was living and working in Detroit, where he worked for the D. P. Brothers Ad Agency, and also at one point, was a reporter for the Detroit Bureau of The New York Times.Sometime in 1941, Mason moved to Akron, Ohio, where he was the public relations director for The General Tire & Rubber Company. In 1944, the company opened manufacturing plants in Baytown, Texas and Waco, Texas. When the plants opened, Mason came up with a marketing campaign called "Texas Goes to War", and traveled to Texas promoting the company. In 1946, be moved to Mexico City and became the press agent for Miguel Alemán Valdés. After Alemán was elected President of Mexico, Mason had a falling out with some of Alemán's lieutenants and swiftly left Mexico. After crossing the border into Texas, and strapped for cash, he took the first job he could find as a reporter in San Antonio. From there, he moved to Alice in 1947 and became managing editor of the Alice Echo. In December 1948, he became the program director for KBKI radio, where his show, "Bill Mason Speaks", was broadcast daily at 12:30. Mason's son Burton, who was also a journalist, had his own show at the station as well, called Duval Doins'.
Murder
In the summer of 1949, Mason had learned that Sam Smithwick owned the land where a bar called Rancho Allegro was located and was being used as a front for gambling and prostitution. On the day before his shooting, he proclaimed on his radio program:On the day of the shooting, Mason had driven to the southwestern edge of Alice to investigate a report of "poor streets" he had received, and was going to report on for his radio show. Alevino Saenz, who was riding along with Mason that day, was a key witness for the prosecution at Smithwick's trial. He testified that Mason and Smithwick were traveling in opposite directions on the same street, and when Smithwick saw Mason's car he waved his hand out his window for them to stop. Saenz said the deputy got out of his truck and approached the driver's side of the car, immediately asking if he was Mr. Mason. Saenz said he was told to get out of the car by Smithwick and when he started to get out of the car, he heard a gunshot and then heard Mason cry out for help. Smithwick had shot Mason, with the bullet hitting him in the chest, right above his heart. A witness named A. F. Eisley stated that Smithwick yelled "You dirty S.O.B.!" at Mason while he was lying wounded on the ground. A Texas Ranger testified the murder weapon, a.45 caliber pistol, embossed with a deputy sheriff's badge on the hand grip, was found on the ground by the open door near Mason's car. Three other witnesses testified they did not see or find a gun on Mason's body.