Waterbury evening Democrat., 1889-09-11
ANOTHER RAP AT COLBY.

The City Attorney Instructed to Iake
 Charge of Liquor Prosecutions.
 At the meeting of the police board last evening, Commissioner Webster being the only absentee, the following resolu- tion, introduced by Mayor Boughton, was unanimously passed:
 Whereas, the bill of fees against the city presented the present month by Charles A. Colley, prosecuting agent, so called, for alleged violations of the license law and screen law, so called, were said to be unduly large, and have been of like character in former months; and whereas it appears from the files and records in the finance department of the city that a large proportion of the cases brought by said agent were nolled with out costs or found not guilty, thereby throwing the burden of expense on the city; Therefore, voted that hereafter all cases that the police department have occasion to report on account of viola tion of the license law or screen law, so department, by the ..chief of police or officer in charge, to the city attorney; and if said attorney shall be of opinion that on the proof furnished there is probability of conviction, he shall pros ecute the same or cause the same to be prosecuted by some officer authorized to prosecute.
 Mayor Boughton says the action of the commissioners was taken after care full consideration and is according to the laws laid down in the city charter. charter passed by the general assembly June 29, 1866 Presentment of com plaints in any criminal matter cogniz- able by said police court may be made to the same by any grand juror of the town of Waterbury, or the city attor- ney, or assistant city attorney of the city of Waterbury. Section 3 of an act amending the charter, approved May l., 1883, provides that the city attorney shall perform all the duties required by and be subject to all the provisions of the charter and ordinances of the city also that he shall do any and all things pertaining to said office which shall be specially required of him by the city.
 The claim is made that the office of prosecuting agent was created in order to prosecute violation of the license law in the smaller towns, such as WolcOtt, Middlebury and Southbury over which Agent Colley has jurisdiction. The city attorney and assistant city attorney of this city are paid to prosecute yiolators of the law ,and the opinion is unanimous that at present. pTlCeS ASouC Oolioy services are not wanted.
 A DEMOCRAT reporter called upon
 Prosecuting Agent Colley this morning to obtain his views upon the action of
 the commissioners. My office is a county one," said MT Colley, "and is not controlled by legislation on the part of the city boards. My duties are already defined in the statutes and the court before whom cases are brought is alone empowered by law, to determine the question whether cases are brought in good faith or what the amount of my fees shall be. I don't believe that City Attorney Terry
 or Prosecuting Attorney Burpee will re-
 gard it as a part of their duty to bring
 or try liquor cases. l caused state
 ment to be published during the latter
 part of last year showing my liquo, prosecutions would not cost the city a single dollar and that the amount re ceived in settlement of cases and the amount received from the state would
 more than balance the cost to the city of cases nolled without costs and found not guilty, for which alone the city is finally responsible.