The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1904-12-02
ROGUE GALLERY
Held Picture of Attorney
In Sensational Case
in Brooklyn.
JUDGE ASTON|SHED

New York, Nov. 29.-In the supreme
court in Brooklyn this afternoon JUS
ice Mareau adjourned for two weeks
the proceedings brought by Joseph
Bebro to secure the release from a
Yonkers sanitarium of Miss Mabel
Spang, daughter of a wealthy family
Of Pittsburg, Pa.
In his action brought to defend the
girl, Bebro declared that Miss Spang,
4 beautiful and cultured girl of 10
years was illegally declared insane
and put away in the institution.
Lockwood and Gilbert, counsel for
The Spang family, sprang a sensation
when they answered Bebro's charges
Of inhumanity by producing witnesses
who alleged under oath that the young
attorney was not "a good Samaritan,
but blackmailer with long criminal
record.
There was a dramatic scene in the
private chambers when Detective Ser
geant Adams produced a picture which
be claimed was that of Bebro, brought
from the rogue's gallery in police
headquarters.
Lawyer Gilbert furnished papers
which he claimed showed that Bebro
has been under indictment on a charge
of grand larceny since June II, 1896
Witnesses were brought in who testi.
fed that he has been arresteda several
times in Boston, Mass, as "a common
and notorious thief"
After this evidence was in Lawyer
Gilbert arose and declared: Judge
when this man told this morning that
his name was Bebro he lied! His name
Is Harry Joseph, alias Harry Phillips
alias Handsome Harry" alias Harry
|. Bebro. He is of a well-to-do Eng
lish family which disinherited him
for a disgraceful marriage. He was
cast adrift, and after committing sew
eral crimes. he came to Boston as a
ticket of leave man. where he set up
a so-called mercantile agency. There
he swindled thousands of persons.
But there is more, your honor
Something bearing more directly on
this case. This man came to my office
yesterday and said:
"If can get $1,000 from you, all
this trouble will cease. If don't get
it, every newspaper Office in the coun-
try will know the inside Of this case
before night
when his offer was refused, this
fellow sent notice to all the newspaper
offices of the city that an interesting
case was to be settled privately.
Then again, your honor, you ought
to know that when this man came to
you and said that his interest in this
case was purely personal he lied. The
truth is, he thought he had a chance
to blackmail a respectable family. He
told you that he was interested in the
girl because he had once suffered un-
lawful detention in an asylum. This
man was placed In an asylum for the
criminal insane"
Justice Mareau was plainly perturb-
ed and after considering the matter
said: Can it be possible that this
court has been imposed upon as the
remarks of this attorney would indi-
cate? If these accusations are proved
in court we will certainly know how to
deal with this man,
"There are two questions to be set
tied: Is the girl insane? And has
this man, under false pretenses
brought action in this court which is
simply disguised blackmail? This mat
ter looks very serious to me. The
hearing will be resumed on December
16, when we win look further into the