Los Angeles herald., 1909-08-17
PROSECUTION OF
TOM BROADHEAD
NEAR TO FINISH
TESTIMONY AGAINST HIM MAY
BE ENDED TODAY
SERGEANT MCDOWELL ON WIT
NESS STAND YESTERDAY
Police Official Makes Several Unusual
Admissions About His Work
In the Redlight Dis
trict
N the person of James Mcdowell.


sergeant of police, who, with Ser
n geant Redmond, was given charge
of the police regulation of Mick Os-
wald's redlight district on Commercial
street east of Alameda, one more type
was added to the number that nave
testified, actually or nominally, for the
prosecution in the case of the people
of California against Thomas H.
Broadhead, former chief of ponce,
charged with accepting bribe of $lOoO
for protection of Oswald's unlaWtul
business in the underworld.
The third week of the trial began
yesterday before Judge George X.
Davis, sitting in department twelve OF
the superior court. At the morning ses-
sion District Attorney Fredericks stat
ed that he expected the prosecution
would close its case some time this att
ernoon.
The last witness for the prosecution,
1t is said, will testify regarding the eX-
penditure of the alleged bribe money
by those receiving 1t, especially the
defendant in this case.
Many Surprises Expected
In the questions propounded by coun-
sci for the defense and in the asides
they have INDUCED in day after day
there is a wealth of promise of sensa-
tional surprises to be sprung upon the
prosecution, but the nature of these
surprises has not been revealed or
even Indicated i'm the somewhat OBJ
scure questions and remarks OF coun-
sci, except in regard TO Tom Savage IN
the cross examination of Oswald last
week, and in that instance the implied
promise of counsel for the defense was
not realized in the cross examination
of Savage.
Sergeant Mcdowell testified that he
had been a police officer eight years, as
a sergeant for the past three, and that
five years of this period of service were
spent in redlight districts.
Yet he did not know, according to his
testimony, that the houses on CONNER
cial street east of Alameda from jan
uary / to August 20, 1908, were houses
of prostitution.
Lack of knowledge Surprising
'They were supposed to be-" he ad-
mitted under searching questioning by
Joseph Ford.
Neither did he know the difference, e
his statements are to be accepted as
"the truth, the whole truth and moth
ing but the truth" between a crib
house and "parior" house.
He visited each of the houses in re-
gard to which he was being questioned
on an average of once a week, he
IL
reason for these visits he replied that
the places were reputed to be disor-
derly houses, and he entered them in
search of evidence.
He admitted that he saw men coming
and going, but could not be sure
whether they lived there or not.
Testimony Was Reluctant
His troubled gaze wandered about
the courtroom while, as a manifestly
unwilling witness for the prosecution,
he yielded up his testimony as one
parts with teeth in a dentists chair.
He patted the arms of the witness
chair and studied the simple design OF
the carpet and the stained glass sky
light of the courtroom, at times looking
expectantly at counsel for the defense
or turning an imploring gaze upon the
Judge when a ruling on some Objection
by the defense was awaited.
"Are you in the habit of going
through private houses in search of
evidence week after week, sergeant, as
you say you did in the case of these
places?" demanded Ford, disgustedly.
Counsel for the defense interposed
objections in chorus, in the manner of
bull fighters waving confusing red
mantles in the face of the bull for the
defense of some threatened companion.
The objections were sustained on the
ground of their technical irrelevancy.
Counsel for the defense excepted to
the manner of examining witness,
asking that the Judge declare IL mis-
conduct on the part of the district at
torneys. Capt Fredericks retorted
hotly that witnesses that know the
facts had to be taken where found and
that the prosecution was compelled to
adopt the means which would bring
out those facts. Judge Davis ruled
simply on the objection made to a
question asked ignoring all else
Orders Finally Explained
Asked, in several different ways,
what orders he had given the patrol
men under him, the witness answered
at last:
II told the men if they caught these
women doin' anythin' out of the way
to arrest them"
"Anything out of the way? What
do you mean by that?" was asked.
hesitatingly.
Anything else?'
"Disturbin' the professionalism like
that"
Asked how the places finally were
closed the witness said:
"They were ordered closed"
Further questioning at length
DrQuSnL out IHS lIlIOfIldllOn lndI Or
Gers had come from somewhere, the
witness being somewhat hazy as to
the source, to close the houses: that
he had told the women they must
close, and they did.
Knew Several Women
Mcdowell after testifying that he
had known some of the women who
were driven out of the Arlington when
it was closed as a result of Oswald's
fight to drive his rival, Savage, out
OF the redlight field, admitted seeing
some of these in Oswald's houses aft
erward and that, if arrested at all, it
had been for soliciting, disturbing the
peace or some such offense against the
pelice rules of the redlight district,
but not for violation of the state law.
Once the witness seemed to forget
himself and answered question with
some completeness:
1--WE just carried out our orders
down there to arrest anyone we caught
soliciting. We got them orders from
one of the lieutenants and from Capt.
Broadhead at different times. He
Continued on Page Two