The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1894-09-08
GRAND JURY MUST ACT
Its Members Oath Bound to Hear
of Police Bribery.
Their Manual Expressly Provides
for Such Cases.
District- Attorney Fellows Admits 1t,
but Refuses to Act.

Whenever a new Grand Jury Is sworn
in and the members go to the room set
apart for their use in the hearing OF
testimony upon which to base indict-
ments they find there a number of
copies of a neat little cloth-bound book
entitled, Manual for Grand Jurors In
the County of New York" 1t is an in
tere sting book even to laymen, but 1t
is particularly designed for the guild
ance of the Grand Inquest"
In the manual are rules and sugges-
tons, sections of the Code of Criminal
Procedure, defining their imperative du-
ties, and some Observations Upon the
Grand Jury SYSTEM" by DE Lancey
Taking the manual as a textbook,
together with one of the Articles of the
Constitution of thed State of New York,
an Evening World" reporter this
morning put a few pertinent. questions
to District-Attorney Fellows In relation
to why the cases of the police captains
recently. dismissed from the force for
bribery had not been brought to the at
tention of the Grand Jury.
Article XIV, section l, of the Consti-
tuition, is as follows:
ANY person holding office under the laws OF this
>
fees perquisites. shall receive consent to re-
[ i've, directly indirectly, anything Of value
or Of personal advantage, or the promise thereof.
for performing emitting to perform any official
act, or with the express or Implied understanding
that his official action or omission to act Il to to
be in any degree influenced thereby, snail be
deemed guilty OF a felony.
Among the sections Of the Code which
are especially called to the attention or
the Grand uJry by the District-Attor-
ney in the Manual are the following:
St.,tin al
knows, has reason to believe, that crime has
been committed which is trlabe in the county. he
must declare the same to his fellow Jurors, VINO
Section $50. Grand Jury must Inquire into the
willfu and corrupt misconduct In oce OF puoi'c
officers OF every description in the county. .
After the attention of Col Fellows
had been drawn to the above sections OF
the Constitution and Code. he was
us it not the duty of the District-At-
torney to call to the Grand Jury.s at
tention any commission of Felony
which may faye been ba b D1susm
and does not the bribery OF police cap
tains lately dismissed from the force
call for immediate action on the part OF
the District-Attorney and the drahu
1T IL certainly the duty of the Dis
trict-Attorney to bring to the attention
felony OF which he has knowledge.
said Col. Fellows, but am not pre-.
pared to tell to you whether or not
shall present the cases Of the police
TT is not the practice OF this office
and it would be, very poor policy &c
forestall its action. by a public an.
would result in putting those. persons
liable to Indictment upon their guard
and warn them so that they could es.
cape from the Jurisdiction OF the
courts" Ill.
Does acceptance of bribes by police
CAPTAINS come under the head Of 'wilfu
and corrupt misconduct of public otiicer'
of every description In the county Tho
| at certainly does, and / may say ina
no mans official position can have an!
effect in preventing, his prosecution 10
crime by his Office IN
| docs that mean that you VIII prose
| cute the police captainsy
II decline to discuss that matter or t.
announce what my official actions as
District-Attorney will be-" g.,
Has the fact that the Lexow com
mittee has not yet completed Its investl
cation had anything to do with the non
presentation of the cases before IN
| Grand ury?' $500
question 1t would not be proper to d
So - -
Suppose that a public officer of an
description should be ad)udsea gun.
of a felony by his superiors in ONCE an
the sworn testimony upon winch ne wa
so adjudged was known 10 a Distrlcl
Attorney, and a Senate COMMITTEE wa
; investigating abuses in the public officer,
department, could the fact of such N
vestigation act as bar to the ,presenta
ton OF his felony case to the Gran
Jury by the District-AttorneyTo, ores
Il really cannot answer sueh aues
"Hasn't the evidence of the bribery, c
police captains taken before the ron.
! Commissioners been brought TO your OH
cial knowledge, Colonel?'
cognizance OF trials before the Polio
Commissioners affecting the discipiln
! But where it is not matter of dis
! cipline or Department rules, but {
: felony?" NJ, =.
u ma gistrate, of the Grand Jurymen then
=. selves TO present to the Grand Jury an
l knowledCe they may have of a criH
, having been committed, but really car
not give to yon at r this ne an amy po ni
!. iictment of police captains or any one
3 In the Manual for Grand Jurors
= occurs this sentence:
" The District Attorney may literally be said
L.en the keys VI the Grand Jury room
The following extract from a presen
ment of the Grand Jury OF the DeceL
her term of 1890 is also given In u
I"Manual.
a Whore a state ~ facts exists warranting
institution OF criminal proseguS1' uu h t' orSr
m"ttca The District Attorney is required, In
discharge of his duty, to procure the attendaf
Up Of proper witnesses before me .'rahu jury anu
n present the ease for their action
10 There is not word about delayi
IL nrosecution or about Senatorial inve
~ fIrations acting as bar to indictme
I'd in the whole manual, but In the se ph
A taken by the foreman ana ms leliI
"a grand iurors the following words occt
1d Nor shall you leave any one un?
rs scented through fear favor affection OF rev ~;
Id Isn't shall present All UNI
er ,ruir ne they come to your knowledge, accoru
of 70 the hest OF your understanding So help
re God
he