The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-04-30
NO CHANGE m POOLROOI LAW
SrBDEKER DECISION LEAVES r.
JUST As IT WAS.

Indict meut Defective IN This One Cass
for Fafling to Set Hsrth That the
stedekers did Not Operate % .
Racecourse or Did Give vouohers.
1T Ii better saith the sage. mot to
know 90 many things than to know 20
many things that are not so.' Some news
papers in this town were fooled on Tuesday
night into the belief that the Court Of APP
peals had decided on that day. in the case
Of the People against Leon Stedeker and
Samuel Stedeker, that there u no law on
the statute books under which punishment
may DO inflicted for running q poolroom.
A q result Of limited publication Of this
misinformation, . lot Of poolroom keepers
went around town hugging themselves
all day, and the tip want forth that, befo.o
the end Of the week, all the poolrooms In
town would be doing business and doing
1t legally.
It's too bad to chill the Joy Of the pool
room men, but a. matter Of cold fact the
decision afirms the constitutionality Of
both the Percy Gray Racing law and Sec
ton ssl OF the Penal Code, under which the
Stedekers were indicted for keeping q
poolroom, and simply holds that the in
dictment against them was effectively
drawn.
The brothers Stedeker were indicted
some time ago. To each one OF the three
counts In the indictment benjamin Stein
hardt, attorney for the defendants, inter-
posed q demurrer. Judge Foster sts-
that he thought the higher courts ought
late Division overruled him. Before the
Court Of Appeals the appeal was argued
by John r. Dos Passos and Benjamin Stein
hardt for the appellants, and by Assistant ant
Judge Cullen, who wrote the opinion,
makes short work Of the. appellants con-
tention that Section 35i Of the Penal Code.
which makes II q felony TO keep pool
room. IL Unconstitutional. He says:
The principal objection urged by the APP
referred to Is unconstitutional because OF he
offences by that article when comm tied
without the grounds Of any racing Ing a Is Ia
th Sa ;s Sns se,s When commtted on the racing
racing law and Of the provisions Of section ssI
:srS sA nor cS WI. . T.sp:n the d:ea..c% snd
&: 70 sSs otS 1 a. &.
The Percy-Gray Racing Law. provides
for betting on racetracks only the penalty
Of the recovery OF the money wagered
BY q civil suit unless some record OF the
trans action Ia transferred between the
bookmaker and the bettor. The decision
declares the indictment In the Stedeker
case bad a. q result Of this distinction.
1t says:
There IL no allegation In the indictment
t6s Ses Or p0Ss
that the defendants occupied and kept the
room for that purpose: ..w,.,,.,rndo,
the facts alleged IN the indictment the de-
Cd x xns' os the the
f dSsnt !, silent. &! The nalc.msn. fatally
Kept and occu pied by the defendants were not
on q thorized by statute.
One section Of Judge Cullen's decision
may have the result Of forcing the District
Sc siors on the felony charge instead of in
Special Ses sions. as he has been doing OF
late. The decision says:
II Is contended that SECTION sAs OF the Penn!
y shs' any S Sas f ShG ss shf
Tp ps ar iH fo es.nS Of
demesnor.s Doubtless bookmaking. pool
selling and Ike sss =, In Ss tSe
terms Of Section s4s II the section stood alone
would comprehend these offences
Ut atutes were passed on the same day. May Q,
1895. Tbs, hrst Of these Chap. SO, enacted
Section sis Of the Penal Code so as to present
n In ito present form, and the third Chap. S72l
similarly modified Section ssi Of the Penal
Code
These two sections OF the Penal Code mu 1t
be construed in harmony; otherwise the lat
ineffective. Thus interpreting the section
We think that Section s+3 must be held to EN-,
brace only cases not specifically provided
for by Section ISL. so const rned Section s%s
does not prescribe any penalty fer those Of
fences.
Judge Foster was much interested .yeeter-
day in the erroneous reports OF the decision