The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-10-16
SYSTEM SAVES COPS FROM
 BEING FIRED

! New Haven, Oct 16-After three
 hours of discussion Of police matters l in executive session. following two l hours spent in the hearing of charges 1 against Patrolman William McKier-
 nan. of Station 1, and Supernumerary | David Holly, the police board early ] this morning announced the reduction 1 of McKiernan from grade A to grade C. and suspension for two months, and the suspension of Holly from duty for l 8 period of six months. It was also announced that all. the charges against McKiernan on which he plead l ed not guilty, except that. heard last night, and all the cnarges to which Thomas McGovern had pleaded not | guilty had been dropped on the ground l that the charges to which the two had pleaded guilty essentially covered their cases and Furthermore that Holly was found not guilty. on the charge on which he was tried last night, that of and abusive language about super for officer.
 The political system" governing the police force thus did it's work and as a sop to the public offered new rule by which the old report books of the men will be supplanted by a loose leaf system.
 Furthermore as a result of the big batch Of cases involving drinking on the part of members of the force the board last night adopted the follow ing new rule which automatically provides for the dismissal of officers in such cases in the future:
 "Any officer entering a saloon while on duty and in uniform for the pur- pose of securing intoxicating liquor or being found drunk or -intoxicated while on duty shall be dismissed from the department
 McKiernan's reduction and sl1Spen- sion were based on his plea Of guilty of three counts Of drinking and three of guilty of acts contrary. to good or der and discipline and upon the charge on which he was tried last night. that of neglect to act on the complaint of a. citizen that a man was being robbed in a nearby saloon on which he was found guilty. The other charges to which he pleaded not gull ty were dropped as stated in the fol-
 That the counts upon which Mo- Kiernan pleaded not guilty, to drink ing and entering saloons and apart ments. be dropped for the reason that substantially cover the whole matter"
 The charges against McGovern, to dropped through the following vote:
 That the counts upon which Me Govern pleaded not guilty be dropped in view of the facts that the counts on stantialIy the entire case against him and for the further reason that he un- derstood the punishment inflicted upon the charges upon which he pleaded guilty was the disposition of the entire matter
 Holly's suspension was based on the plea of guilty to charges of being drunk and intoxicated as a result of which he was arrested
 Early this morning after the other matters had been taken up the board finally took up the petitions of former Patrolnen Flynn and Kelly, who were dismissed from the department on drunkenness charges and voted to re- fuse to grant the requests for retriaI of the eases. The action was taken 1t was announced, as a result of the report of the efficiency committee that it had looked into the matter of the new witnesses cited and had decided that the men were guilty as the board had found them to be- and that in consequence of that it did not believe their punishment was excessive.