Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-03-21
"GEoRGIE" GILMoR6's CASE
Keepers Of Disreputable Houses Have q
Scare.
Conviction of the Defendant In the
Witnesses Decline to Answer.

| The first case resulting from the raids in
the Division last Sunday night was heard
In Judge Miller's court yesterday after
noon. the defendant being George Gilmore,
| who kept one Of the houses on 18th street,
| in sight of Pennsylvania avenue. This wo-
\ man was represented by Lawyers Forrest
and johnson. who awaited themselves Of
| every technicality. The women caught In
the house when the raid was made protect
ed the keeper of the house as much as they
could in giving their evidence.
| But the police knew of the character of
the house and the women who lived in IT.
| and they also gave the court and jury the
benefit of their opinion of the character of
the neighborhood in which the house is To-
| Gated. Prosecuting Attorney Mullowny
| made a strong argument, and the jury
promptly returned verdict of guilty. This
| verdict received the applause of the ladies
| of the social purity organizations who were
| In court. These ladies expressed a willing
| ness to care for the women who would by
the verdict be compelled to seek quarters
| elsewhere.
| The news of her conviction spread through
| the Division with remarkable rapidity
and some of the women in that locality,
fearing there would be raids last night,
closed their doors.
/
Prosecuting Attorney Mullowny. in call
| ing the case to the attention of the court
yesterday afternoon, said that the defend
| ant was charged with keeping a common,
| ill-governed bawdy house at the corner of
| 18th and D streets. The information, he
said. charged that the defendant had vio-
| lated the law from the LIST of January to
the 18th of this month.
| Precinct Detective Sutton testified to the
| circumstances attending the raid He went
there in company with other officers, and
| found in the house four women, besides
| the madam and eleven bottles of wine.
| The raid was made, he said, because the
prOpr'etreSS was suspected of illegal liquor
| selling and keeping a bawdy house.
| Madam Gilmore, he said, complained
| that she was sick and said she supposed
her house was raided because it was larger
| than some of the others and was probably
| more able to pay fine.
| when you made the raid did you find
any men in the house?" asked counsel.
Il did not, the witness responded but
| l understand that there were three men in
| the house."
Did you have raiding warrant when
| You went there?"
| Il did not
| Witness was asked if he knew the char
| acter of the women found in the house. and
/ ne answered that they had the reputation
| of being prostitutes.
| The defendant, he said, is proprietor Of
/ the house.
| Policeman Williams. who is on the obi
vision beat, was next called. He said that
| pected that the defendant was keeping an
| Unlicensed bar in addition to keeping a
| house of 1l-fame. They did not get suffi-
Gent proof in the liquor matter, and so
| this charge was preferred. Witness said
| he participated in the raid because he
was ordered to do so by Acting Lieuten-
ant Shilling. Lieut.. Amiss is out of the
| city One of the women, he said, had only
entered the house that night, and he did
rot know much about her.
| Did you see any men in the house?"
| Il did not
| Policeman Kilmartin gave similar evil
4 dence.
| Acting Lieutenant Shilling testified that
he got Information that liquor was being
| sold in the house after an order against
| the sale of intoxicants had been given
| When witness went there and saw the
| defendant, she exclaimed: My God. there's
man upstairs" and went up to let him
| out. Witness went upstairs and saw the
| man and woman in a room.
| Down stairs he said, there was another
man, and he was talking to several wo-
| Men.
.'The rev GIRL" said witness, IT under
| stand had been run out of New York by
! DIR. Parkhurst."
| Witness said he had not procured any
| warrant before leaving the station. and
| the arrest was made without warrant.
Women Decline to Answer.
Lillian Chase, well-dressed young wo-
| man, twenty-five years old, was then called.
| She was very unwilling witness, and in
response to certain questions she answered:
| Il decline to answer that question, because
| it will tend to incriminate me-"
| Under oath. the young woman told the
| court that she had boarded in the defend
| ants house since November, and had paid
| so a week She occupied room Is on the
| upper floor, and paid her board with money
oh had in CoN,in hon
She said she had never seen men call to
| see other women in the house. II have
| friends come to see me- she said.
The witness was questioned about the cir
| cumstances under which she was found in
| the room with male companion, and she
| declined to answer, upon the grounds of her
former declaration, as well as for the rea-
son that 1t would disgrace her.
| Counsel for the defendant held that the
/ objection was well founded, and cited a de-
| cision Of the Illinois court of appeals.
| Mr.. Mullowny insisted that the woman
| should be compelled to answer, but Judge
Miller recalled the fact that the Edmunds
! act is in force in the District and said that
the decision of the Supreme Court was
clear on the subject. He thereupon held
that the question need not be answered
| Witness said she did sewing for a living
both here and also in Baltimore before she
came here. Her hour for retiring, she said,
| is II O'Clock midnight, and she has break
\ fast at noon.
Cora Brown, a tall. stylishly dressed wo-
|
| where she lived. She responded: Il decline
| to answer"
| why do you decline to answer"
| Because don't choose to answer it."
| We've had enough of this foolishness''
| said the court, land now you answer the
question or I'll send you to jail. Raise your
| veil and answer the question:
| Il live on 18th street."
/ When esked how she earned her living
| she said she had gentleman friend.
| Witness told Of her visits to George Gill
| more's house, but said she had never done
| anything wrong there.
| Eta Nelson, who reached here from New
| York Monday and had been in the house
| only short time when the house was
| raided, was sworn a witness, and she
! said she was in the parlor talking to a man
| at the time the raid was made. She says
! she is a dressmaker and lives in New York
| at No. 237 West 4Sd street.
Did DR.. Parkhurst drive you out of New
| York;?
| Il don't know DR.. Parkhurst."
| but didn't you tell the officers that DR..
l Parkhurst drove you out of New York;"
| Il never had anything to do with Dr..
] Parkhurst.''
| The witness said she did not know what
, disreputable house was.
| This closed the case for the prosecution
| and counsel for the defendant claimed that