The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-02-26
DRAGGED INTO LIGHT
Star Chamber Methods of the
Police Exposed.
FORCED TO GIVE UP A PRISONER.
Judge Langley Rebukes jackson for
Playing the Cxar-Othef Prisoners
in the Same Fix.

The police. having failed through the
use Of ordinary methods to capture the
burglars that have been working without
hindrance in this city, have brought into
play the methods of the iEquisition. This
fact was inside public yesterday by the re-
lease Of Tom Gibbons on writ of habeas
corpus, after having been secretly and ille-
gally imprisoned in the city Jail for three
days, but four other men were still con-
fined in the dungeon. whose names had
not been registered and against whom no
written charges had been preferred until
midnight. Their names, as learned by q
PosT-iNTELLIGENCER reporter last night.
are Jack McKinnon, Jack Davis or Gill
more, John Lyle and Frank Williams, the
last named being the man who escaped
from Bailif' Wheeler on February l6. The
police believe that these. together with
Gibbons and Jim Maioney. who was re-
leased quietly, comprise the gang that has
been terrorizing the city.
When the thieving, burglarizing and
highway robbery epidemic became so seri-
GUS in spite of the reform" administra-
tons police force that the council took
the matter up, there was developed an
unusual degree of vigilance ON the part of
Edward Cudihee received information
which led to the secret arrest of Jack Nc
Kinnon, Tom Gibbons and Jack Davis,
alias Gilmore. A lull followed, only to
have fresh batch of depredatlons occur
in parts of the city hitherto unmolested.
The chief applied for fifteen more men and
the council refused. Previous to this the
police commissioners, seeing how things
were moving. had come to the conclu.
sion that the best thing to do
was to come back to the old plan
and appoint an inspector. Their
intention was to make Capt. Willard as
sumo that Office, increase his pay to 1925,
and give him charge of the detective work.
The council having baked their plan, the
chief was given the privilege, or perhaps it
was always allowed him, to use what men
he wanted for special work. The change
came last Thursday, when Capt. Willard
was detailed to work up some special
cases. Capt. Sims took the watch from 8
o'clock in the morning to in the after
noon. The chief then looked after things
in the Office till in the evening, when
Capt. Hogle came on duty and stayed IN
til 4 in the morning.
Capt. Willard and Detectives Cudihee,
Roberts and Cave were on duty at all
hours, and the secrecy of their actions led
to the belief that something was in the
wind. Consultations were held with GER
tain people in certain parts of the city, and
the work of gathering in the suspects
commenced. 1t will be remembered that
on February Is Detective Cave and Officer
Powers arrested Frank Williams and
Charles Sullivan on suspicion, but the
next day they were tried and convicted in
the municipal court of being disorderly
persons. Williams escaped while being
taken from the court to the Jail. The facts
in the case were that both Williams and
Sullivan were thought to have been i'm
plicated in the robbery of f. Voland's tailor
shop on Cherry street some time ago.
Apparently no evidence could be obtained,
for the real charge never came to light
The police had reason to believe that Will
Jams would go to the Pacific house on
South Second street, and here, it is
thought, they got track of him and made
the recapture as quietly as possible.
Through information obtained from some
unknown source, the police suddenly be-
came aware OF the fact that destitute la
borers we're probably not the men who
were doing the work, and commenced to
look around in the vicinity OF Pike street.
and it is positively stated that some of the
suspected men were taken from that Sec
ton.
1t is not probable that any suspicion of
men being concealed in the Jail would
have arisen but for the exertions of Tom
Gibbons friends to find out the cause of
his disappearance When it was found
out, despite the denial Of the Jail au-
thorities, that he was in the dungeon az
suspect. the sudden disappearance of the
others named was explained. The calcu.
lations of Chief Jackson and his ieuten-
ants. who were gathering or trying to
gather evidence by pumping the prisoners,
had decided upsettlng when Judge Lang
ley. in the superior court yesterday,
ordered Tom Gibbons to be released on a
writ OF habeas corpus on the petition of F.
f. Chase. The petitioner swore that Glib
hons was illegally arrested and detained in
Jail. and had been SO since February %.
During all this time no warrant of arrest
has been issued, nor has any process
issued or complaint been filed against him
In any court.
Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Mcbride
appeared for the chief who was also pres
ent to answer. and at 4 80 the cause came
up for hearing. Mr.. Mcbride read the re-
turn of the writ in which Chief Jackson
deposed upon oath that Gibbons was ar
rasted on February - for completely in
the robbery of tailor shop. from which
several bolts Of cloth had been stolen. The
affidavit continued that. although Glib
bons had been arrested on February %.
others were implicated in the affair, and it
would have been highly imprudent to
make the matter public until they had
been arrested. He also stated that one
man was arrested last night, and that an
other would probably be arrested by Mon.
day. at which Date information would be
flied against them.
For Gibbons the illegality of the proceed
ings was urged by Frank Hartley Jones.
his attorney, and also the outrage which
had been perpetrated His right to have
a hearing and demand TO be admitted
TO bail had been denied him. as had
also any chance to see his friends
or obtain the advice of counsel. Further
than this Mr.. Jones assured Judge Lang
lev that he had been denied access 20 his
client, and that not only the chief but
both the police captains had denied that
Gibbons was confined in the city jail.
Mr.. Mcbride followed by stating that
there were precedents in the cases of hold
ing men on kilograms, and that il was for
the best interests of the state that men
charged with felony should be held in this
manner in order to obtain convictions
Judge Langley IN the course of his de-
cision said:
I, is virtually admitted in the return tha,
Gibbons has been in custody since February -.