The Anaconda standard., 1899-05-17
BRANAGAN'S MEN GO FREE
ACQUITTED BY POLICE MAGIS-
TRATE SULLIVAN.
The Captain Declares That He Is Still
. Street Supervisor-Conducts
His Own Case.

The trial of Captain Branagan's men
who We're arrested last Saturday for
disobeying the orders of Mayor Nc
Carthy directing them to discontinue
working on the streets was held yes
terday afternoon before Judge sullivan
in the police court resulting in an ac-
quittal of the defendants. City Attor-
ney E. M. Lamb and his assistant,
Charles Little, appeared for the city,
while Captain Branagan acted as coun-
sci for his men. The defendants were
John Donohue, l.. Freudenstein, Will
lam Maloney and Henry Overly, and
they were charged with obstructing the
streets.
For the prosecution Mayor Mccarthy
testified that Captain Branagan had
rendered his resignation as street COM
missioner and he had appointed ]. J.
Cotter to fill the vacancy. Notwith
standing he had resigned, Captain
Branagan continued to act as street
commissioner and had directed the de-
PENDANTS to do some work in East Park
street. He ordered the men to stop
work under penalty of being arrested,
but they disobeyed the order, and he
ordered their arrest He was acting
under the law empowering the mayor
with supervision of all city work.
J. j. Cotter, the new street commits
sioner, testified to having ordered the
men to quit work under penalty of ar
rest if they disregarded the order, and
Officer Shea told of making the arrest.
He stated that when he took the de-
PENDANTS into custody they left pile
of dirt in the street, which was an OBJ
struction.
The defendants had evidently been
well schoOled in the testimony they
were to give, as they all told the same
story without variation 1t was to the
effect that they received instructions
from Captain Branagan to fill up
hole in East Park street They hauled
dirt to the spot designated and were
engaged in making the fill when ar
rested. One of their number had sug-
gested to the officer that they be per-
mitted to level off the dirt they had
unloaded, but said they were not per-
mitted to do SO. Replying to questions
by Captain Branagan, they said he
Captain Branagan) had given them
instructions not to disobey any orders
of the mayor
Captain Branagan took the stand
and said he considered that he was still
the street commissioner; that he had
found place in East Park street which
needed repairing and in his capacity
as street commissioner he had given the
men orders to go to work He held
that if any one had committed an
offense it was himself.
In arguing the case City Attorney
Lamb read the statute empowering the
mayor with authority to supervise all
city work and pointed out that it was
not for this court to decide who was
the lawful street commissioner, but
that the mayor and Street Commits
sioner Cotter were the constituted
power and, therefore, the collateral
rights of Captain Branagan, if he had
any such rights, could not be deter
mined at this time. The defendants
having violated the order of the con-
stituted power. as shown by the evil
dence, they were for all the purposes
of the case guilty of the offense charg-
ed. If they were not to be so held
they could go on disobeying the or
ders of the mayor and a state of
chaos in the public service would en-
sue, which would be highly detrimen-
tai to the interests of the people,
Judge Sullivan held with those who
would thwart the mayor in his deter
mination to give the city good ad-
mlnistration. He said he did not be-
lieve any man was to blame for TAX
ing days work when he could get it,
no matter who the employer was, and
he made an order discharging the de-
PENDANTS.
The case of Dick Maloney, another
of Branagan's men. who was ar.
rested for leaving team unhitched
in the street, was continued to Fri
day.
Other cases before Judge Sullivan
We're: Frank Corcoran. fined S. for
disturbance; John Cassidy and Pat
Casey, sentenced to 20 days each for
vagrancy; Frisco Nell" vagrancy, set
for hearing Friday