Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1915-06-29
ESSENTIAL FEATURES
HAVE BEEN AGREED UPON
Investigators Work on Report to City
Council Behind Closed
Doors.
BOUND BY SECRECY PLEDGE
Believed Report Will Favor Abolition
of Police Board, Employment of
One Salaried Police Commissioner
and Three-Platoon System

! All the essential features of the re-
| port TO be submitted to the City Coun-
Gil in joint session by the special com
| mittee which investigated the Police
department were asrced upon at the
| executive session held last night
Members of the investigating body
| vouchsafed this Information at the
| close of the meeting. which began at
9:3o o'clock and concluded ut 11:45. the
body adjourning at that hour subject
TO the call of the chairman
"Wil you call the committee for to-.
morrow night"" Chairman Barton
Grundy was asked.
Il think not" lie replied we were
unable to proceed further tonight be-
cause of the absence of the City At
torney. / don't think it would be right
to go ahead and adopt Il report which
the City Attorney ha- not seen He is
the legal adviser of the committee"
Several members of the commit ce
conceded that the main features OF the
| report were already adopted.
UNANIMOUS AS TO
FOURTEEN ITEMS
You may say" said President Will
liam II. Adams, Of the Board Of Alder
men, an eX-ofiicio member of the COM
mittce. that the action of the COM
mittee to this time mas been entirely
harmonious. OF sixteen items voted
upon the vote in fifteen was unani-
NOUS"
How about the rumor current to the
effect that at the Saturday night ses-
sion Councilman Edgar Il. English, the
lawyer member of your committee, eN-
pressed himself as in favor of censur-
ing the three commissioners accused
by the Vice Commission for mscon-
duct, while pointing out that in Il court
of law tho evidence ndduced would not
justify Il conviction IN the case of any
of the three accused mcn?" was ask ed
of Alderman W. w. Workman.
Nothing to it, Mr.. Workman re-
piled.
What about the report that another
member of the committee moved to eX-
onerate Commissioner y. f. Mccarthy
and give him Il clean bill of health"
Well what else?" quered the in-
vestigator. evincing some interest.
''Thc story goes that your committee
took n vote OH the proposition and the
committee voted six TO one for the cX
culpation of Mccarthy"
Your information is incorrect" re-
piled the Alderman briefly. lie de-
clined to discuss the matter further.
REPORT WILL he MADE
TO CITY COUNCIL
when we adjourn tonight" said
Councilman Edgar II. English. just be-
fore the executive session began. 1--WE
Will probaDly ne IN Il pOSltion to give
out substantially what will be con-
tanned in our report. The absence OF
City Attorney Pollard. however. will
prevent us from making public at this
time the text of the findings and recon-
mcndations."
Subsequent proceedings initiated
against the goodly intentions Of Mr.
English.
AS understand it," Councilman
George w. Rogers told the newspaper
men, mot n word of this report is to
be given to the public until ii is pre-
scented TO the City Council in joint
session. The same pledge Of secrecy
imposed at last Saturdays session was
renewed tonight. Our report will not
bc submitted to the Common Council
before going TO the Board of Aldermen.
The City Attorney has ruled that mas
much as the duty of investigating the
Police Department was imposed upon us
by the City Council in joint session
the report must be made To both
branches simultaneously"