Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1912-08-12
AND PO[|CH|
CAPTAIN AT ODDS
~
Precinct Commander. RyaI
Says Leniency Toward Won.
en- Prisoners Is Handicap. !

Calling attention to the fact thar
he could not find convictions or cisi
cumstantial evidence Judge Hahn Va
the First Precinct court today die.
charged eighteen of a gang Of twent1r
two negro women taken in IL generH
raid by the police on Saturday aft,
ernoon on the ,'Barbary Coast :,
Taking issue with the findings ~
the court Captain Michael Ryan. ut.
der whose command the arrests were
made, declared that 1t Is useless for
him to attempt to clean up the coa:t
unless the court assumed a different
attitude with regard to .~'evidence..S
Except in the four instances whefe
the court found convictions on SPA
ciic charges Captain Ryan sought 40
have the prisoners arraigned on "a
general charge of lettering. He placed
every member of the raiding party en-
the stand to prove that the womep
had congregated in Nicholson and
Augusta streets simply for the pun
pose of addressing ~passersby. TbA
court, however, held that a definite
charge would have to be made
against all of the prisoners. VIII
that the captain explained that it
was impossible to get any more. e1ir
dence and was willing thai the ca SIS
against the be dropped. Atfr
hearing several more of the offifeff
Judge Hahn ordered all but foul ~
the women discharged with the warm
ing hat if ever they appeared befofh
him again, no matter what the
charge. they would be sent to- TOE
penitentiary. -
The four women, who were fined SAD
each, paid their fines. Policeman
Mullen appeared as complainant and
alleged that they had accosted hiiq
just about fifteen minutes before the
general roundup. He was in plaip
clothes at the time, he said, and
walked through Nicholson street fpf
the purpose of collecting evidence. -
When the police appeared on the
coast all of the women, who wefe
said to be standing and sitting in
front of several of the houses, ar
though they did not live there, scats
tered in all directions. Many of them
were chased into houses and theu
arrested. At 81 Nicholson street
and % Augusta street, two opium laYs
outs were confiscated. They were
found in rooms on the top floor. -
In seeking to have the court find
kconvictions Captain Ryan pointed
out that he had received complaints
for sometime past from promine4t
citizens hat have been held up, and,
in some instances. robbed by the
women while on their way home at
night. -
within two doors of your own
home in High street." Captain Ryan
said to the court, "a man says he
was dragged into the cellarway and
robbed. 1 am badly handicapped be-
cause these people will not come forr
ward with a complaint. They are
ashamed. Unless an example Is
made of some of these prisoners
there is very little chance of putting
| a stop to this nuisance" -
The Judge declared that he appre5
| ciated the handicap under which the
police were laboring, but held that he
could not find convictions On the evi:
dence submitted. :.
The raid was made by sixteen pa,
trolmen in plainclothes. :,
In the Second Precinct Police Court
Alfred H. Alexander, proprietor OF
the aPrk Hotel, 493 Broad street, was
held in 81, 900 bail by Judges Herr
charged with maintaining a disorder
ly house. Fifteen others, found in
the place when it was raided by Cap
tain Brown, of the Second Precinct
Saturday night, were held in $500 bail
each as material witnesses. +
The raid was the result of a story
told Captain Brown by 17-year-old
Helen Dores, whom the police found
in front of the Central Railroad stai
ton on Thursday, after she had been
away from her home since July "A.
The girl said she had been taken
to this house by an elderly man last
week, and when Captain Brown and
a squad of officers went to the place
| Saturday to investigate the girfs
story, the captain found such a con-
dition of affairs that he decided 70
mako a raid. -