The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-10-09
MAGISTRATES LET THEM GO
AND TIE DISTRICT ATTORNEYS
OFFICE NAILS THEN AGAIN.
sample Cases Of OTenders who Would
Else EscApe-A Bureau Maintained for
the Express Purpose OF Correcting
Errors and lnJustlces OF Courts.

cases sent TO the court OF opeClai oeSSlOuh
for trial by the police Magistrates. II
c,sts the county about $4,000 a year and
il WA established by law two years q
because faulty papers sent down ny the
Magistrates led TO the discharge OF from
40 TO 4OO prisoners a year. Since the
bureau was established only about one de-
m,lrrer a month In sustained for these
reasons. all through this check on the
Magistrates.
This information bureau OF the District
Attorney has also accomplished another
public service by causing the arrest and
often the conviction OF persons discharged
by Magistrates when serious crime has been
committed. In the last six months twenty
arrests have been made on informatEons
vhen the accused persons have already
been discharged in h police courts. The
papers come to the District Attorneys
Office and are gone over In each Of these
csses il was seen hat there was evidence
Of probable guilt. The informations ave
been made up. presented to the court OF
Special Sessions, bench warrants have been
issued and a large proportion Of convic-
tions has followed.
One Of the cases still pending is that
Of DR.. Simon NJ. Roth OF 293 East Third
street, who il charged with making out a
false death certificate in the case Of Pauline
Green. who die April % last from a criminal
operation performed in the house Of q mid
wife named Elise Hoffman, at 2I3 East
Seventy eighth street. Magistrate Wahle
heard the case. 1t followed him from court
u court and he granted no less than eight
a~diournments and finally on August 8 last
discharged DR.. Roth. The papers reached
the information bureau in due time and on
August 20 DR.. Roth was rearrested and the
case is not settled.
Registrar Guilfoyle OF the Health De-
partment was the complainant in the case.
An autopsy by DIR. o. H. Schultz. Coroner's
physician, revealed the real cause of death,
according to the afidavits in the case.
DR.. Roth certified that the cause was acute
parenchymatous nephritis and uraemia
The death certificate was in the name of
Lena Schultz ana the age OF the woman
was put at 3S. She was buried as lena
Schultz in Mount Olivet Cemetery on April
%. The body was disinterred on May 5
and identified by John Green a. that OF his
sister, Pauline Green. He said she was
IS years old. The death certificate also
said she had died at 2S3 East Seventy
eighth street. a eneme house, instead
Of at Elise Hoffmsn's place, 213 East
Seventy eighth street. It further said
that she had been in this country only nine
months, when she had been here fourteen
years.
DR.. Roth was brought before Magistrate
Wahle on May II charged with violating
section 1872 Of the Penal Code, which makes
II q misdemeanor to issue a false death
certificate. He nae attended the woman
from April is to April %, when she died.
Magistrate Wahle adjourned the case 70
May rs. On that day he adjourned il 10
May %. Then he adjourned 10 % june 7,
then to June 10. then to July 10, then to
July IS, then to August 3 and finally to
August 3, when he discharged the accused
physician. When the papers reached the
District Attorneys Office they showed a
sufficiently grave situation in the esti-
nation Of the officials to warrant a trial.
A warrant was issued at once and the case
IL to be passed upon. The napers give no
reason for Magistrate Wahle's action.
Another case which instantly attracted
the attention Of the District Attorneys
Ohfce was that OF John c. Holterman and
Henry Detlefson OF $40 Fast Sixteenth
street. They were arrested on june Q last
for violating the liquor tax law in selling
beer u a minor, a boy name Michael Dan
gelo, as the court papers have 1t, 10. years
old. The complaining witness was Vincent
r. Pisarra, an agent NJ the Society for the
Prevention Of Cruelty TO Children. The
testimony showed hat the boy handed a
pail and money to Detlefson in front OF a
ealoon and that Detlefson and Holteruan
went inside the saloon, kept by the latter,
and that Holterman came out and gave
the boy the beer filed pail with 40 cents in
change. Magistrate Battery Oar Finn
heard the case or june II and discharged
both defendants. Warrants were issued
nv the Court Of Special Sessions and the
men were convicted and fined $50 each or
sentenced to serve ten days imprisonment
in the COUNTY prison. They paid the fines.
Another case which attracted the atten-
tion If the District Attorney was that Of
danes NJ. Fitzpatrick, who was charged
with practising law without having been
admitted 10 the bar. He was discharged
or August - by Magistrate Breen. The
testimony went 10 show that Fitzpatrick
bad acted as an attorney for ". Carroll,
who had had trouble with his business
partner and who had talked with Fitz-
patrick about his case. He swore that
Fitzpatrick had said to him;
Billy, | am a lawyer contested with the
legal department Of the New York Life
Insurance Company. l will be your cham
plon.-
Carroll swore that Fitzpatrick rave him
legal advice not TO sign a certain release
and aid in the presence OF Robert :.
Ridgely:
As Mr.. CAROLS lawyer ! would not
permit him to sign such a paper and give
away his rights"
Ridgely corroborated this in an afidavit.
Magistrate Breen heard the case on August
- last and discharged Fitzpatrick. An
information was filed against Fitzpatrick
through Special Sessions and he wal re;
arrested on September 1. The case Is still
pending.
Magistrate Steinert discharged a man
named Bernard Schuman on July Is Tor
buying copper wire and brass fitting . from
q boy named Joseph McReynolds at 1913
Eleventh avenue for four cents. The
goods were stolen. The crime was impair
ing the morals Of a child. The case reached
the District Attorneys ONCE and on August
q a warrant was issued. He was not re-
arrested until August IL. He was COM
mitted 10 the Tombs and on August II was
convicted and fined.
The police on January 81 last arrested
Marie Enger for keeping q disorderly house
At tO2 West Eighty-ninth street. The case
came before Magistrate Finn. Two police
officers. Frederick Keesler and John T.
Koran, made afidavits going to prove that
che kept a disorderly house. h Magis-
GAte discharged the woman on February 8.
She was rearrested by order OF the Special
Sessions Court on February 10 and on Feb.
rIary 10 she pleaded guilty and was fined
ts or q sentence OF three days in the county