The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-11-17
SEEETSER TC FACE CHARGES
OF CRAVE MISCONDUCT IN THE
!, OFFICE OF ANiESTRATE.
IN G Matter IAkeiy to Get TO the Appellate
Division -He Accuse I" Dischsrsing
n n prs oaer Another Magistrate Had
W Comnl,trf-E:eciIOn .NOiitieS IN II.

Gin soon be confronted with An-accusation
Of crave misconduct in Office amounting
TO a violation Of law. The accusation
viii prohablv be brought. befo re the Board
al Magistrates at their next meeting on
the last Monday in November. The char
acter of the charge is SUN that IL the board
does not refer it to thu, Appellate Dlvi-
sion for consideration tive probability is
that il will be brought b Gore that branch
Of the Supreme Court in s, me other way.
The accusation is that N agistrate Sweet
ser discharged a prisoner committed 10
che ~uorkhouse by a fellow Magistrate,
Cornell. and thereby practi ;ally exercised
the ~pardoning power. 1t is charged that
his action was in reality a tail delivery.
The assertion is made that Magistrate
Cornell hirnseaf could not have discharged
the man from the workhouse after he had
once sent him there. and that the most,
under the law, that even Magistrate Cornell
could have doue in the case would have
been to release the prisoner under pro-
baton.
1t is held that no Magistrate can undo
the work Of anothen' Magistrate and that
no authority, except the pardoning, power,
could exercise such a privilege legally.
The case is aggravated because IL il alleged
that the prisoner was released for the sake
OF politics on election day. and is still more
complicated because the prisoner was
under voting age. and II he was released
from jail for voting purposes all those con-
cerned in it are placed in an additional
bad light.
The case was that of william McKibben,
q youth Of 20, who was ara aligned on Mon
dav. November 5, the day before election,
- NH--!.-,Az a~,r,nll IN tho Work. villa
notice court, charged with disorderly con-
duct. When Magistrate Cornell reached
the case a man who stood on the bridge
handed over his card and said Good morn
ing
The card was tina; of Thomas Rock, who
was running for State Senator against
Senator Grady and who was a conspicuous
figure in tow at that time. Magistrate
Cornell is a Republican in politics, but he
doesn't carry his politics into the police
court. He simply greeted Rock pleasantly
and suggested that if he was Interested
In the case Of McKibben he should listen
to the testimony.
Patrolman Clark of the East Fifty-first
street station arrsigned Mckibben. The
testimony was not altogether satisfactory
TO Magistrate Cornell. and when Clark
said McKibben had often given the police
trouble with his rowdyism the Magistrate
asked if any Of the policemen present knew
the prisoner. Policeman Jacob Bachman
of the court squad said he did. and he de-
clared that McKibben had caused much
trouble to policemen on post by his brawling.
MAGISTRATE Cornell at once fined McKibben
IS. and turning to Tom Rock said:
You have heard the testimony, Mr..
Rock. There is no other course open to
me but TO fine the man."
Rock said he was satisfied and disappeared
quickly. he had done all he could in that
line of getting votes. A Republican Candi-
date evidently bad no influence with a Re-
publican Magistrate. Some one paid Nc
KIbben's fine. Az the latter was passing
out of court he turned to Bachman and called
him a vile name. Bachman at once arrested
him and took him before the Magistrate.
Magistrate Cornell heard testimony of the
threats McKibben made OF getting even;
and he said:
house for disorderly conduct
The commitment was duly made out and
the prisoner sent back to be taken to the
workhouse when the first batch should 60
over. That ended the case SO lar as Magls-
trate Cornell was concerned. These com
mitments to the ~workhouse under the cnmu-
,lative sentence law are all for SIX months,
but If it Ia a first offence the prisoner may be
released in five days; II the second offence
in twenty days, if the third or later offence
at any time double the last stay of the pris-
oner in the workhouse. Mckibben had
never been sent there before, and 50 he was
really sentenced to five days Imprisonment
Magistrate Sweetser sat in the court the
next day. Republican politics had not
been successful the day before. and 1t is
alleged that Democratic politics was now
tried with a Democratic Magistrate. AT
Anu rata tUn nan nnnaQTRd before the
Magistrate and asked for Mchibben's
discharge. IL is said that one OF them Is
employed in the City Court. The Magis-
trate asked where Mchibben was and wa
told that he was in the court prison. He
asked for the papers. After a search they
were produced and the Magistrate dis
charged MoKibben.
The court records show that Mckibben
was held by Magistrate Cornell on the day
before and was sent 20 the workhouse,
Then the entry on November o lays Dis
charged There is no entry saying THAI
the man was put on probation, an act which
il il declared that only the original COM
hitting Magistrate could perform.
The day after election Magistrate Cornell
had occasion TO go to the Yorkville court
TO give a hearing and while there he learned
what Magistrate Sweetser mao done. he
at once called Magistrate Sweetser into the
private room and called him to account
What took place there In known only 70 the
two men and a stenographer whom Magis-
trate Cornell called in to take down the
Magistrate Cornell, il is known, was
extremely angry. He told Magistrate
Sweetser' that he had committed a viola
ton of law land il is understood hat he
said he would carry the case further. Magis-
trate Sweetser was decidedly flustered ar
the result of the conference. He got the
original papers in the case and gave a re-
ceipt for them to Police Court Clerk Richter
Magistrate Cornell also obtained a COPY Of
the original papers and he took that away
Magistrate Cornell went of the bench foI
ten days, in accordance with tie schedule
of the courts and took time to think it over.
He sat yesterday in the Harlem court and
was ask ed II he would say anything about
the case and what line Of action he pro-
posed to take. il any. Tire Magistrate de-
clined to talk about the matter az all. He
said il would not be seemly TO discuss any
dispute with a fellow Magistrate in the
# public prints and that. the dignity Of his
Office required that il he took any steps in
the matter he should DO so only in the sp-
NJ proved routine of such matters.
When asked II he intended to bring the
matter up before the Board Of N Magistrates
bedecIined to commit himaelf and said that