Francis J. Heney

Who was Francis J. Heney?

Francis Joseph Heney was a lawyer, judge, and politician. In 1891 while an attorney in Tucson, Arizona Territory, he defended the abused wife of John C. Handy, who threatened to kill him. When Handy attacked Heney, Heney shot and killed Handy in self-defense. Heney served as Attorney General of the Arizona Territory between 1893 and 1895. He was the chief prosecutor of the Oregon Land Fraud scandal from 1904 to 1910 and served as U.S. District Attorney for the District of Oregon from January 9 to December 3, 1905. He prosecuted corrupt San Francisco politicians from 1906 to 1908. He ran for the U.S. Senate from California on the Progressive party ticket in 1914.