Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1915-09-13
SHOT MEANT FOR A
BIRD KILLS JANDA
Walter Cerveny, IL, Confesses
Bringing Down Man as He
Emptied New Shotgun.
HEARS BODY FALL, THEN RUNS

Yes, / heard dull thud after /
fired that last shot" Walter Cerveny,
17year-old South Side boy. held on
a charge of shooting to death Joe
Janda. South Side grape picker, who
was found dead on a hillside near
Child's Point Monday afternoon, told
Captain Anton Vanous of the police
department at the South Side station
yesterday afternoon. with faltering
tones the lad continued: Il rushed
forward. saw a blue shirt through the
grapevine. Then l got scared and
ran all the way home"
After a four-day search Sheriff
Hutter OF Sarpy county and Detective
Mike Gillen Of the South Side police
force finally ran down clue that
led to the confession of the boy who
had accidentally done the fatal shoot
ing.
Uses New shotgun.
Young Cerveny, with his father. had
bought a new 16-gauge shotgun at the
Pavlik hardware store at Twenty-first
and r streets Saturday night Early
Sunday morning, at o'clock, he departed
from home and went on a hunt In the
direction Of the river. Proceeding along
the river bank he came to a point near
Childs Point, where his path was crossed
by a large black bird of some kind After
firing at the creature and thinking II had
fallen dead on the hillside he ran UP the
hill from the tracks and came near the
grape plckers, who were at that time
engaged in picking grapes He was, how
ever, unaware of their presence.
In his search for the fallen bird Cerveny
suddenly saw another smaller bird in .
I grapevine Just ahead of him. Raising
his gun he fired and a moment later
heard the thud of a body as Il struck
the ground. The man shot was Joe Janda
He had been less than twenty feet away
at the time and was high up In q tres
near the grapevines.
Seen Running Across Field.
Farmer Larsen, who described a young
lad of the same description as Cerveny
as running across a millet field just east
of the place OF the fatal accident, later
identified the lad. At first the boy re-
fused to admit that he had shot a man,
failing to tell in the first interview with
police officials, of firing at the second
smaller bird in a grape vine. After
going over the ground with Sheriff Hut
ter and Detective Gillen yesterday after
noon. he included this incident in his
story, and a question by Captain Vanous
later brought out the complete confess
sion.
County Attorney Nicholson of Sarpy
county. Captain Briggs and other Of
ficers were In the captains office at
the time OF the confession. Nicholson
will not prosecute unless other evidence
develops. believing that the youth is tell
ing the truth and the shooting was
merely an accident
boy Has Clean Record.
Cerveny's parents live at 40 Soutl
Nineteenth street. When the boy was
arrested by police officers his mother
became hysterical. His father works at
the Armour Packing company. while he
himself works in a store at Seventeenth
and Vinton streets. The boy has a clean
record and is we'll known among Bo-
hemians OF the Brown park district
South Side. Sheriff Hutter took charge
of the shotgun and shells that remained
from the days hunt and will hold them
lin case OF further emergency.
Il was upon the information and de-
scription OF Farmer Larsen that the clue
Ito the buying of the new shotgun by the
hoy was obtained.