The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1907-03-27
CASE NOW Up
To CATHCART
Duvauchelle's Fate Awaits the
Action of the County
Attorney.


The charge of grating which has
| been hanging for some weeks over the
head of Euguene Duvauchelle, a spe-
cial police officer, during which time
partment, was brought to head yes
terday at the trial of Tin Hoon, his
discharged and Judge Whitney took
the occasion to say that Duvauchelle
was the man to be tried for the Of
| Tense. Accordingly the evidence which
the police have gathered, together
with that presented during the trial,
has been laid before County Attorney
Cathcart by Chief Taylor and it is
now up to the county prosecutor to
say whether the matter will be push
ed farther or not. Duvauchene's sus-
pension from the force, in the mean
! time, has been made final by his dis
charge.
A report was current yesterday,
probably without foundation, that this
DuvaucheIle incident will form a con-
siderable part of the charges to be
brought against Iaukea by the hos
| tile supervisors. The facts of the mat
| ter fail to show the head of the police
department in any unfavorable light,
/ hny Il nd
| to prove what the Sheriff claims for
| himself, that he will stand for no
grating nor any suspicion of such on
the part of or against any of the men
under him.
Duvauchelle is now accused of hav-
ing raided a gambling game at the
Kalfhi slaughter house some weeks
ago, catching a number of Cinnamon
at play. He is said to have requested
money from them as bail, which, how
ever, was not produced, and then to
have sent another Chinaman, Tin
Hoon, to them to get money on the
promise that the case against them
| would be dropped. A few dollars was
secured in this way from the China
cording to their own story. One of
them happened to be on the same
street car as the two alleged grafters
and claims to have watched them
divide the spoils. A rumor of this
affair reached Chief Taylor a week
later, the result being the arrest of
| Tin Hoon and the suspension a day
| or so afterwards of DuvaucheIle. In
| the meanwhile the facts of the case
| had been reported to the press, the
Advertiser publishing a statement
prior to the suspension of the officer
that an investigation into a case of
/ alleged graft was being made by Tay-
| lor. A few days afterwards the story
was again published in one of the af-
| ternoon papers, by that time Tin
| Hoon having made a confession i'm
| plicating Duvauchelle, something he
had denied point blank at first.
| The police officials were afraid to
| liberate Tin Hoon on bail before his
case could come before the magistrate
and the truth or falsity of his confess
sion be established for fear he might
be tempered with They had also the
matter of a possible conspiracy to de-
| fame the officer and discredit the de-
partment to confront and were anx-
Whitney as soon as possible. The
| case, however, was postponed from
time to time, first at the request of the
prosecuting attorney, then at the re-
quest of the defense and finally again
by mutual consent, Duvauchelle, who
was naturally looked upon as an in
terested party and whose interests had
to be protected as such, having met
with an accident after the second
postponement. The case finally came
to trial yesterday, with the result stat
ed, Judge Whitney saying that the
accused Chinaman was only an agent
of the principal offender.
In no instance was there the least
disposition on the part of the Sheriff
orr Mr.. Taylor to hide any part of the
investigation from the public, giving
all the information asked for to in
quiring reporters.
1--WE want the public to know ex-
actly where the department stands"
said Sheriff Iaukea yesterday, when
asked regarding the story that the
matter was to become a part of the
supervisors investigation into the
manner he has conducted his office.
II have stated, and I will state again,
that [ am determined that there is to
We no IOOtIl lOE diIy ldih ISSdIulII5
corruption in the affairs of the police
as there was during the last admins
tration. There has never been the
slightest attempt to shield Duvau-
chelle from punishment if the truth of
the charge against him could be
proven, nor has there been any loss
of energy on the part of Mr.. Taylor,
in whose department the affair hap
pened in making a thorough investiga-
ton of the affair. Nor will there be
any hesitation at any time in inves-
tigating charges against any other
member of the force. l will not have
man in the department against
whom anything savoring of crooked
ness can be shown nor against whom
there is any strong suspicion of crook
edness.
Il do not know anything about the
supervisors going to make this a part
of the investigation they are max
ing into the affairs of my department,
but they are quite welcome to do so
if they desire. I have nothing to con-
zeal on 4ba 1,ava Iono