The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-07-06

The Convicted Police Comm ssioners--
Their Incligibility Under the Char
ter.
We have alleged that the convicted Police
Commissioners, Charlick and Gardner, have
forfeited the offices they held and are ineligible
for disappointment under the city charter as
well as under the provisions Of the Revised
Statutes. This has been denied by the pro-
found legal advisers Of the Mayor, on the plea
that the Commissioners were convicted under
the statute of violation of the Election law Of
1872, not involving a violation or evasion Of
the provisions of the charter. The Assistant
Corporation Counsel says:-'tMr. Gardner
and Mr.. Charlick were not indicted for
any offence prohibited by the charter nor
have the provisions of the charter in relation
to the conviction of officers of the city gov
ernment, for violation of its provisions, any
application whatever to the cases of those
gentlemen" 1t is very desirable that the
Corporation Counsel and bis assistants should
understand what are the offences prohibited
by the charter" for the Mayor is supposed to
get his law from them, and it may be under
their advice that he does not regard 1t as his
duty to ''keep himself informed Of the doings
of the severah departments, or 'to be vigil
liant and active in causing the ordinances of
the city and the laws of the State to be exc
cuted and enforced" Let us see whether
the Assistant and Acting Corporation Counsel
is correct when he says that the two con-
victed Police Commissioners, in violating the
provisions of the Election law of 1872, devolv-
ing upon them certain obligations and
duties that they failed to observe and obey,
did not commit an 'offence prohibited by the
charter"
1t will probably be conceded that if the
Election law of 1872 had been embodied in
the charter conviction for a misdemeanor
in having violated one Of its provisions would
have brought the offender within the operation
of section So Of the charter, which makes it a
misdemeanor to "wilfully violate or evade any
of the provisions Of this act and disqualiies
the guilty party 'forever after from receiving
or holding any Office under the city govern
ment." But if the provisions of the Election
law of 1872, although not copied verbatim
into the charter, are explicitly devolved upon
the Police Commissioners by the charter,
then violation of any of those provisions
must clearly be violation of the charter
itself All we find in the original charter of
1878 in relation to the Election law or the
duties Of the Police Commissioners under
it is embraced in section 104, which
says:-"All the provisions of law now
in force in regard to the duration,
manner of conducting elections and canvass.
estimate and disposition of votes at general
elections shall apply to each election of city
officers )" and in section 11S, which says -
"The several departments shall continue to
possess the same powers and perform the
same duties as heretofore, except as
herein otherwise provided" But in chapter
1885, Laws of 1873, supplemental to the char
ter, we find the duties devolved upon the
Police Commissioners by the Election law Of
1872 made their duties under the charter.
Section Of this supplemental act provides,
ssThe Board of Police Commissioners of
Police, &C., of the Police Department Of the
city Of New York shall possess and exercise
all the powers and perform all the
duties heretofore possessed performed and
exercised by the Board, Commissioners, &C.,
of the Metropolitan Police, district police
force and the Police Department of the city
of New York; and all the provisions of law
which related to such Boards, Commissioners,
&C., within the city of New York, so far as
they are not respectively inconsistent with
the provisions of the act hereby amended. or
this act, are hereby devolved upon the Board
of Police, Commissioners of Police, &C., Of
the Police Department of the city of New
| York.
! The convicted Commissioners have been
found guilty OF violating law all the duties
of which were thus explicitly made their du-
ties under the charter. How can they be held
to have escaped the penalty imposed by the
charter for precisely that offence