The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-03-19
POLICEMEN INDICTED
TWENTY-FIVE NEW WORKERS TO
BE PUT ON THE RACK.
Report of the Extraordinary Grand
Jury-Severe Arrangement of the
Tribute LEVERS.

NEW YORK, March 1S.--The extraordi-
nary grand jury, which has been out since
Jan. Z, reported to Justice Ingraham, in the
Court of Oyer and Terminer, to-day. Fore
man Leggett handed up bunch of indict-
ments numbering twenty-five, and also
presentment censuring the police depart
ment. The grand jury was not discharged.
The following passage occurs in the present
ment:
"In circumstances the testimony offered
has tended to show financial consideration
ana AND IN some Gases lax admlnistration. a. In 4
violated and the immunity from arrest en-
joyed by the lawbreakers is inconsistent
with the law
The presentment alludes, at the outset, to
the Lexow investigating committee as hay
ing spent many months in collecting evil
dence which, while ample to satisfy the
public of existence of corruption, fell short
in most cases of that which the law re-
quires to establish guilt. The jury has ex-
amined several hundred witnesses. In our
opinion, the report says, the great body
of subordinate police officers are honest and
veStgation would doubtles have proved most
valuable had we been able to demand 1T, but
without proper orders, accompanied by hon
est suggestions from their superiors, no aid
of this character was practicable. No such
orders We're given, although at the begin
ming of our session the cooperation of the
executive officers of the department was not
only invited but directly requested.
Not only has this inactivity of the force
itself proved a source of difficulty, but its
attitude throughout has hindered US far
more. The impression was created and sup
ported by most convincing facts that our
labOrS in ferretinE out and enabling the
prosecution of unfaithful police officers in
stead of being approved by the department,
was an attack upon it. They whose duty it
was to aid in detecting crime have united
to prevent it's detection. The influence of
this apparently recognized antagonism upon
by US was manifest. Many persons, them
selves law breakers, who had been the vic
tins of extortion and blacknail in the past,
feared to speak, being apprehensive that
their disclosures would be punished by
greater persecution hereafter. During our
entire session no police official, high or low.
has volunteered one particle OF aid, nor has
any evidence whatever been forthcoming
from police circles, except such as has been
drawn from unwilling witnesses"
In conclusion the report says; THE fact
that the executive head of the force has
accumulated considerable fortune as re
suit of favors granted in the performance
of official duty: may well have caused de-
moralization Of the force under his COM
mand. The distinction between such faVorS
and direct gratGities is not one that his
subordinates are likely to appreciate.
As soon as it became known that Judge
Ingraham had signed warrants for the in
dicted officials the corridors of the big build
ing began to FILL Criminal lawyers who
have defended the police cases We're soon on
hand, bat professed to have no business in
view, but were there simply through curoS-
lty. Men who have the reputation of being
friendly to the police department We're no.
tlceable in the throng. When Judge Ingra-
ham reached court. at 5 o clock, there was a.
JAM but all who had assembled to hear the
names of the indicted officials were disap-
pointed, court was Immediately adjourned
until IL o'clock tomorrow morning. Rumor
ran riot as to who had been indicted. No
one in authority would speak.
Rardlow s.. Weeks, assistant district at
ttorney, in company with another official
from Colonel Fellows's Office called at po-
lice headquarters at 545 o'clock. Both Wis
itors went directly to Superintendent
Byrne's private office, where they remained
Weeks had in his custody warrants for the
arrest of the indicted police officers, which
left the building shortly after the departure
of Mr.. Weeks. He declined to talk about
the individuals or the presentment against
himself, but said that there would be no ar
rests during the night. 1t was inferred
from his statement that the indicted men
would be notified privately TO appear in the
courthouse in the morning to answer to the
charges in the indictments and give bail.
DR.. Parkhurst expressed much satisfac-
1.-THE presentments and the Indictments -
he said, .'reafIirm with a very important
jury Of 1857 f sig IS gratifying % to to Know that
the Jurors are inclined to judge leniently
the. inferior ranks of the force, and it is
perior officers are TO be held responsible for
the corruption which permeates the de-
partment The fact that only q compara-
lively limited number of indictments, SEEM
ingly, has been found, some of which,
doubtless, when tried, will not issue in con-
victions, only goes to show that from the
very nature of the case relief is not to be
secured by the ordinary process of the
publication of the force in the
medium of legislation This, too, is
sne naned nat p9ston IN w which
the Senators will not do it. If we can judge
from appearances, the Lexow people at Al
bany would rather we should tester in po-
lice rot than to surrender their hold on
patronage. Legislative perquisites count
more with them than municipal decency
presentment is it's brief but weighty char
acterization of the official iniquity prac-
more effective by the fact that it is based
entirely on the superintendent's own en-
forced confession This presentment, to-
Interesting and determined chapter in the
history of our municipal regeneration" DR..
Parkhurst added that there was a proba-
blity, even likelihood, that the jury would
return more indictments than those in the
first, lot. The jury is willing TO sit until
April / and continue the work. The OBJ
stinacy of police officers, he said, in refus-
ing TO give testimony had prevented as
many indictments at the present time as
had been expected.
The Oyer and Terminer grand jury has
refused to indict Parkhurst's agents, Ben
nett and Whitney, Samuel Cohen and ia
cob Liss for conspiracy. charged by Detec-
tive Sergeants McManuS and Jacobs. Ja-
cobs and McManus were arrested three
weeks ago upon complaint of the Park
hurst agents for conspiring with Liss to
commit a robbery. They were subsequently,
exonorated by. the grand jury, and they
then caused the arrest Of the Parkhurst
detectives. Counsel for Jacobs and Nc
Manus will try and have the case submit
ted to another grand jury.
The Reorganization Bills.
ALBANY, n. Y, March IS.-Senator
/ Bradley brought into the Senate this after
noon the police reorganization bills for New
York, as reformed by the committee of ten
of the New York Chamber of Commerce.
There are three of them in all-the one to
reorganize the department. that divorcing
the election bureau from the police depart
ment, and the general police bill. They
were introduced at the earliest opportunity,
and, with slight objection by Mr.. LexoW,
were sent TO the committee OF the whole
for consideration Thursday.