The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-09-05
POLICE TRIALS.
ne Case of Sergeant Day. Of tho
Eleventh Precinct.

Eleventh Precihc"
Sergeant James D. Day, OF tine Eleventh precinc'
police, was tried yesterday. IN tue cour. rum as
,he Central once before commissioners Disbecker
ana nnrve. for buying a stolen gold watch from
. man named ..Moseyu Monahan, proprietor OF
d,srenntahle den in the Fifteenth ward. The facts
Seve,oneo in the case, and which were obtained
from a number OF af1davlts sworn to before
no,ice iustice by the parties concerned
an IL. were as follows-A man named
Norris Martin was seen in posses
zion OF gold watch which had been
stolen nom one Thomas Collier, In Amity
street. on the night OF the 9th OF November last.
Martin was arrested by Detective Murphy, OF the
Twenty-ninth precinct, for having in his posses
sion the stolen property. He was arraigned be-
fore q police magistrate and charged with the
Onence. Martin explained to the magistrate and
made an afdavit to the fact that he had purchased
the watch from jewener and diamond broker
doing business at No. 6S5 Broadway, named
Gegerman. This latter was summoned before
the same authority, and he testified to
having purchased the watch from Sergeant
Day, who was then doing duty in the Fifteenth
precinct. The Sergeant being in turn called TO
give an account OF how the property got into his
hands, told the history OF his connection with it,
which was the same as the defence made yester-
day before the Commissioners He said that
few evenings after the night Of the last election
he was standing on the corner of Broadway and
AmIy street talking to a friend ON the results OF
the election, when Monahan came up to
him. After some general conversation Mona
han asked him II he wanted TO buy watch.
DAY replied that he did, and asked to
be shown the watch. Monahan produced 1t, say
ing he would take $50 for II. Day offered to be-
come the owner Tor SIS, and bargain was struck.
Day said he retained possession OF the watch Tor
month more, but nnolng 1t would not keep
good time he sold 1T to Geigerman for $40. He
asked Monahan no questions as TO how ne came
INTO possession or the watch. Knowing the man
to be reputed wealthy no doubt as to the regular
character OF the transaction entered his mind.
the SSs NOT Of the a5ss tGa
ing any point put forward by the Ser.
geant, has curious bearing on the case.
He testified that on the night OF the 9th OF Novem-
Der he arrested lor intoxcation IN the Fiji
teenth precinct and taken to the station house
There he was arraigned before Sergeant Day, who
was in charge OF the desk at the time. The usual
prelimin aries In such cases being over he Was con-
ducIed to the cells and locked up. The next day,
when he was sober, he discovered that he had
beeu robbed the previous night oil three watches
one gold and two silver-and $50 IN money. This
conducted before police magistrate, who
dealt with -. his case Of d drunkenness nInn On
character, said by the police to be thief, was ar
rested for the robbery and locked up at the FIf
made and the securing OF the prisoner took place
while all the sergeants except Holbrook), were
issued for the arrest OF two men supposed to be
implicated IN the robbery. but only this one could
pe discovered. Inc other mas managed 10 eiude
the vigilance of the police up to the present time
AOnahan's house, where the arrest eff
1ected. was sworn to be disreputable
one by number Of oficers, yesterday belonging
80 the Fifteenth precinct Each one said the char
acter OF the place was well known in The station
house to the captain, sergeants and patrolmen.
MOnaEan himself. who is since dead, had never
been known TO have committed any criminal
offence, but his house was perfectly understood to
be the resort of thieves and their female associ-
ates. Sergeant Day SAID III his defence, tnat he !
was quite open and free about the possession OF
the watch and the circumstance Its coming to
be his property. He took 1t into Benedict's, few
days after the purchase, and asked their opinion OF
It's value. he was told 1t was not worth more
than the price OF old gold and so he disposed Off
To Geigerman Tor $40. Geigerman swore yester- |
day The watch was not worth more than what he !
paid Tor 1t and yet Martin, who appeared to have
An equal judgment with Geigerman on matters OF
this kind, swore to having paid Geigerman $40 for
It. Collier, the owner, valued the time piece at S.5
The case Was reported to the BOARD.