Waterbury Democrat., 1902-05-08
POLICE COURT DoINGs.
Case for Violation of the Liquor Law
 Before His Honor.


 Before His Honor.
 The principal question before Judge Burpee in the city court to-day was: Did Officer Byrnes last Sunday have an optical delusion when he says he saw two men in Thomas Fitzgerald's saloon near Dublin street?" Attor- hey Guilfoile, representing Fitzgerald, maintained the officer was so affiict- ed. Judge Burpee held otherwise and Fitzgerald is so confident that the judge is wrong that he is going to have the matter tried out in the dis tfict court. to which he took an ap- peal. This was about the strangest liquor case that has been tried in the city court for some time. Officer Byrnes testified that about S:15 last Sunday morning he was on duty on Dublin street and was passing Fitz- gerald's saloon when he saw two men drinking at the bar. One had laid down his glass, which was a beer glass, and the other was taking the final observation through his at the bar. The place was open to view as the law requires and the men were as plain to the officer as they well could be. The officer said that one of them appeared to be rather small and the other about the average size, and that one of them wore blue suit The officer denied that Officer Phelan was with him at the time or that he met him after his visit to the saloon. He said that the moment he saw the men in the saloon he went around to the back door and broke 1t in. Yet he saw no one inside, though he did not lose moment in getting around and it took him only very short time to cover the distance, which was about thirty or forty feet There was no way for the men to get out without be- ing seen. The officer said the men got out the back way and jumped the neighboring fences, but yet he heard no noise himself and he ought to have seen the men getting away. But he neither saw nor heard anything leav- ing the saloon. He looked into the cellar and the saloon keeper offered to light candle to enable him to see bet ter. To get out that way they would have to come out on Dublin street Such is the officers story. Fitzger- aids Is to the effect that he went into his saloon about S:45 that morning on his. way to church to get change. He had not been in the place three min utes when the back door was broken in without warning. He offered to light the officer into the cellar and that when the officer got on the street again-he was only a few minutes in the saloon-Officer Phelan was stand ing outside. The whole transaction did not occupy five minutes.
 Notwithstanding that the officer was certain he saw the two men in the sa- loon, the accused, through his coun- sel, was equally confident that the of ficer had had an optical delusion that morning. The court in disposing of the case said that it was simply a matter of the accused's testimony against the record of Officer Byrnes, who has been on the force twenty years. He therefore would have to find against the accused and imposed a penalty of S2O and costs on two com plaints, selling and keeping open on Sunday. An appeal was taken to the district court.
 Mrs Ellen Flanagan of Bishop street was charged with similar complaints. She sent word that she would plead guilty, but was unable to appear in court, so the case was continued to Monday.
 The cases against Miles Booth and Charles Root for not sending their children to school went over to Satur- day.
 Frank Myers, for violating the junk laws, settled for S20.
 The cases against Joseph Farley, Charles H. Boylan, William l.. White and John E. Mccoy for dealing in bo- gus butter without the same being labeled will be taken to the district court. Attorney Root, representing them, filed q general demurrer which was overruled and a fine of S10 and costs was imposed in each case. It is claimed the law regarding these particular cases is defective
 Dennis Bunyan was given a chance to do better. He has done so well since last December that sentence was suspended on two charges intox- ication and resisting Officer Allen.
 Dan Neubarg and Jacob Alderman were fined s and costs each for vio- lating the law regarding the. junk business. Charles Slomanski was fined the same amount for the same offense.