Los Angeles herald., 1908-01-01
DEMURE MISS,
FORGER, AGAIN
IN CUSTODY
RUBY CASTLEMAN, OUT ON
PROBATION, ARRESTED
MANY ARE VICTIMS, DECLARE
POLICE
Pretty Young Sunday School Teacher
In Matron's Department of jail
with Charges Against
Her Name

| Ruby Castleman, the pretty and demure
young Sunday school teacher who was
arrested for forgery two years ago and
| placed on five years probation is in Jail
again.
| Her prediction for using other peoples
names at the bottom of bank checks
proved too strong for her moral stamina
and she fell a victim not once but several
| tines subsequent to her release on pro-
/ baton in the latter part of 1905.
| 1t was in September. 1905, that Miss
| Castleman first achieved notoriety. On
| the 18th of that month she was first ar
rested for forgery. She had successfully
used the name of Mrs. Louise A. Bowen,
wife of former Councilman Bowen, at the
bottom of several checks on the West
| Side bank.
Miss Castleman called at the Bowen
| home, 1888 Calumet avenue, September II,
| and asked permission to use the tele
| phone. Mrs. Bowen, who answered the
| call at the door, graclousy permitted the
young woman to come into the house and
was so pleased with her appearance and
! address that she eft her alone for sew
| eral minutes while she went about her
household duties.
Shortly after Miss Castleman departed
Mrs. Bowen missed a check for $3.50
drawn TO the order of p. A. Amick,
which she had written out to pay bill.
She searched for the check and not being
able to find it concluded that she had
sent it to Amick and thought no more
about it.
Appears at Bank
Two days later Miss Castleman APP
peared at the West Side bank and pre-
scented a check for s4,25 payable to the
order of Mrs. p. L. Amick and signed
Louise A. Bowen. The signature was so
perfect that the cashier had no hesitancy
in cashing the check for the young wo-
man, who said she was Mrs. Amick
The next day she appeared with three
checks, one for $40, another for $3.50 and
a third for S127, all payable to Mrs. P. l..
Amick and signed Mrs Louise A. Bowen.
These checks were cashed without ques-
ton and 1t was not until Mrs. Bowen
called at the bank that she learned of the
forgeries.
The matter was reported to the police
and Miss Castleman, who was identified
as the woman who had presented the
checks and represented herself as Mrs. P.
L. Amick. was arrested by Detectives
Roberds and Sharon at 545 Maple ave-
nue., where she was calling on friends.
Miss Castleman protested her inno-
cence and readily accompanied the de-
tectives to the police station. She stated
that she was a Sunday school teacher
and that she was the niece of II. w. Mar
tin of 426 East Fifty-second street. with
whom she lived.
This was found to be correct, but fur
| Their investigation revealed the fact that
despite her respectable antecedents and
claims she was a check forger.
Breaks Down
The young woman finally broke down
and confessed and was held to answer TO
the superior court by Judge II. II. Rose.
In the superior court she pleaded guilty
and rallied her friends to her support
and secured her release on probation, the
sentence given her being five years.
In the meantime it was ascertained
that she had secured 500 from the Union
Bank of Savings on a pass book belong
ing TO Miss Bessie Bond of 9l7 Francisco
street, which she had stolen during a
visit to Miss Bond.
After her arrest it was found that she
had called at the home of Ira Phillips at
lilo West Adams street and asked to use
the telephone. During the time she was
in the house she ascertained that Mr..
Phillips did his banking al the National
Bark of California, and he found out
later that she had obtained that infor-
nation when forged checks aggregating
nearly 800 were presented to him.
Despite all this evidence presented by
the police the young woman so worked
on the sympathes of the court that she
five years.
Nothing was heard of the daring
young forger until December II last,
when she presented at the First Ma
tional bank a check for $50 purporting
to be signed by Harley Hamilton, di-
rector of the Los Angeles symphony
orchestra. The signature was so per-
feet that the check was cashed with
out question, as were two others for
sfr,iIar amounts with the same name
attached to them.
Receives Paper
Two days ago Hamilton received his
checks from the bank and found that
| among them were the three'forged bits
of paper, He at once notified the bank
and the police were given description
| of the woman.
Yesterday she walked into the First
| National bank and presented at the
| window a check for $50 purporting to
be signed by +. w. Blanchard. presi-
| dent of the blanchard Building COM
pany.
The woman was detained for a few
minutes on some slight pretext and
the police notified. Detectives Nc
Namara and Murray were sent to the
bank and they at once recognized her
as the probation forger.
She was arrested and taken to the
city Jail and placed in a cell in the
matrons department with the charge
of forgery against her name
! 1t has not been decided yet whether
she will be sent to prison on the former
hve-year sentence for breaking her
parole or whether she will be indicted
| and tried on the new charges and thus
| have her sentence added to,
The police state that the woman Is a
daring and dangerous criminal and
that mercy shown her is misplaced, and
IL their efforts are of avail she will
speedily be placed in either Folsom or
/ San Quentin.