The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1912-08-03
SAFETY BOARD
INVESTIGATES
NUMBER CASES
ONE FIREMAN WAS DISCHARGED
AND ONE POLICEMAN SUS-
PENDED FOR THIRTY DAYS AS
NIGHT, WHILE OTHERS WERE
EXONERATED.

| Several members OF the police and
| fire departments were before the board
of public safety at the regular session
held last night, with the result that
one member of the fire department,
| Bert Young, was dismissed from the
| department, while Mounted Ofhcer
| Lowery, Of the police department, was
| suspended for thirty days. The
charges against the others were dis
| missed.
| The charge against Fireman Young,
| who was one Of the oldest employees
| of the fire department, was reporting
| for duty in an intoxicated condition.
! He pleaded guilty and stated that he
! had asked for a substitute and had
been refused one,
| Chief Bicker stated that the reason
why he had been refused the substi-
tute was that all of the subs had been
| engaged already.
The fireman asked that he be allow
ed to sign a pledge for a year, and
Joseph I. Johnson made motion that
his request be allowed, that the pledge
be deposited with the city clerk and
! that in case he broke it he be dis
charged from the department. The
vote on the motion resulted in a tie,
the chairman casting the deciding
1 l.
| then made a motion that he be dis
missed, this motion also receiving a
tie vote, the chairman again casting
| the deciding vote for the motion.
| Officers Lowery and Redenbach were
| Jointly charged with visiting a saloon
and drinking while on duty and with
being brutal to g. prisoner, the charge
being made against them by Isaac
Fair, a negro. and all of the witnesses
| q 90
| Fair claimed that he had been ar
rested on the charge Of using obscene
| language, of which he claimed he was
not guilty, and that Officer Lowery
| had hit him and then knocked him
| down and kicked him, while Officer
Redenbach looked on. He also stated
| that he had seen both of the officers,
as he expressed it, drink a hearty
beer" at the back window of a saloon
| at the corner of Belmont and Devil
| Tiers streets. This occurred on July
| 49, and he claimed he had not been
| able to work since on account Of his
| injuries. He admitted he had been
found guilty and fined in the record
er's court on the charge of using OBJ
scene language.
| Parts Of his testimony regarding
the arrest were corroborated by other
negro witnesses, burt none Of the rest
! of them said they saw the officers take
| a drink, while both Of the officers and
| the saloon proprietor, a white man,
| testified that what the officers drank
was ice water
After a considerable amount Of dis
| cussion, II was decided to dismiss the
! charge of drinking against both of the
! men and also the charge of brutality
| against Officer Rendenbach.
A motion to dismiss the charge of
| brutality against Oficer Lowery was
lost, the chairman casting the deciding
vote, after which another motion to
suspend him for thirty days was car
| ried, 1t being necessary for the chair
| to cast the deciding vote this time
also.
other Trials
Mounted Officer J. r. Simmons was
| arraigned on the charge of having
been asleep while on duty. 1t being
stated in the charges that he had adj
nlitted to Captain Gilmore that he had
| been asleep. He pleaded guilty with
the privilege Of making a statement.
| The officer said that on the night in
| question he had just gone back to
work after taking his vacation and
| that on account of sickness in his
| family he had lost lot Of Sleep He
| said he had had lot of sickness re-
! Gently and could not afford to lay off
| and lose a day, SO he had tried to
overcome and dropped off to sleep,
which he admitted to the captain when
| he found him after he had failed to
| make q report and later to the chief.
| Chief Sanders stated in behalf Of the
! officer, when asked about his record,
that he was one OF the best and most
alert men in the department and had
never been before the board during
+; the three years he has been in the
! departrnent
! Joseph :. Johnson, chairman of the
! former board, also corroborated this
! statement, and considering the cir
! cnmsrances, il was finally decided TO
| dismiss :he charge against him.
! Officer Hall was charged with con-
+: duct unhecoming an officer, but after
j the chiet of police had filed the
! charges, the party who requested the
/ charge made refused to appear against
/ him and the charges were dismissed.
| Would "Weed Out" Department.
I Joseph I. Johnson read the letter
i az tina Hity attorney written several
months ago. IN which he gave an
/ opirion that the board had no right
I! 10 force members Of the police and
/ fire departments to pay debts. How
L ever. H-. Johnson called attention to
4 the part - the OPINION which said that
i Il = cCuia be shown that the refusai
4 81 such member 10 pay debt con-
! 'tttnts5 dishonesty or the intention to
4 ;7ztTa1i5. '',ts fact would Justify the
hoard y disnissing him from the de-
. nartrrent.
i Mr Joh1soT' said the department
hal IN their employ q lot Of dead
heats who bsd takea: advantage of
rhe city atlrrnev's opinion, and were
h making regular practice Of beating
L sCccurts and Ehst from now on ne
gas goins to investigate such cases
ar iT1s;s: that the board take action
un3sr the Pert Of the opinion relat-
ing &c fraud and dishonesty.
before We received that opinion
Re said the men in the department
had good credit everywhere, while
nu-v very few Of them have any credit
and Il is not right that the good ones
should suffer on account Of these
dead beats"
"PoIice Rendezvous"
Before the meeting adjourned,
Il Chairman Hargis said he wanted to
call the attention Of the board to the
Il police rendezvous at the corner Of