Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-12-15
ONE DYING, THREE
BADLY WOUNDED IN
. STREET GUN-F|GHTS
Thomas Gillick, of Newark, h-
legged TO Be Cause of Both
Battles.
POLICEMAN SAVES LIFE
BY USING NEGRO AS SHIELD
One Fight Takes Place in Ellie
abeth, Second Follows in
This City.

AS the result of two street gun fights
four men are in hospitals today, one
of them believed to be mortally
wounded and the other seriously
wounded
One of the revolver battles took
place in Elizabeth and the other,
direct outgrowth of it, in Runyon
street, this city. The gunman who
precipitated both is Thomas Gilliolx,
an eighteen-year-o homeless boy, OF
this city.
He admits that he is responsible for
shooting two Elizabeth policemen. He
would have killed Patrolman Thomas,
of the Sixth precinct, this city, too, IL
the policeman had not used negro
companion of Gillick as a shield. The
negro, Nelson Smith, of this city, will
probably die.
The injured in the two gun fights
are:
Rounds Sergeant Herbert Fietz, OF
Elizabeth, shot in the right breast;
resting well In the General Hospital,
Elizabeth.
Patrolman Patrick Kennedy, Eliza
beth, shot in the right arm; General
Hospital, Elizabeth.
John Powell, twenty-seven years
old, IA Garfield street this city, a
negro, shot in the abdomen; condition
critical; General Hospital, Elizabeth.
Nelson Smith, eighteen, 755 South
Seventeenth street, negro; shot in
the right lung; condition critical:
City Hospital, this city.
Opens Fire on Omcers.
Fietz and Kennedy, both in plain
| clothes, saw a trio of men in North
4 CIR Col <1,x
night and followed them. Evidently
one of the trio recognized the two
men as officers.
| He suddenly opened fire. The po-
| licemen shot back as quick as they
could pull their guns. One OF the
shots-there were about fifteen ex-
changed-lodged in the right breast
of Fietz and another in the right
arm of Kennedy. Powell, who was
wounded, was captured, but his two
companions escaped.
| The description of the two men who
escaped was telephone1 to Lieutenz
ant Tenore at police, headquarters
and forwarfec-.bv--frin1 to all pre-
cincts. Captain Cordano and Lieu
| tenant Maier started out to assist
the uniformed men.
Thomas received word of the Shoot
ing when sending in his duty call at
11:45 o'clock. Seventeen minutes later
he turned into Runyon street from
Sherman avenue and walked into two
men, who answered the description.
Without waiting to draw his re-
yolyer, though he knew the men 70
be armed, Thomas sprang at the pair
and caught each man by an arm at
the same time demanding who they
were and where they were going. As
he was asking the question GilIiclS,
the white man. tore loose from his
| grasp and ran to the opposite side OF
the street. Then, turning around, he
covered the policeman with a revol-
yer, saving;
| Uses Prisoner as shield.
! Let that fellow go, or I'll shoot"
| Instead of complying Thomas
| swung Nelson, his prisoner, In front
| of him, at the same time reaching
| for his own weapon. Before he could
draw it Gillick had fred four times
and had started to run away. Thomas
| fired one shot after the man as he
was disappearing in the darkness up
| Runyon street.
| He was seen to cross Elizabeth ave-
nue. moment later by Patrolman
Albert Fischer, but again managed
to elude capture by dodging into the
deep shadows. Nelson was then
brought to the Sixth Precinct police
station where he made a full con-
fession to Captain Cordano and Lieu
tenant Maier. who had hurried there
from police headquarters. and Lieu
tenant McRell.
Meanwhile word of the capture had
been received in Elizabeth and De-
tective- Sergeant Ward and Detectives
Dahoney and Ta1bert requisitioned
the automobile of Fire Commissioners
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