Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-09-13
BRIGHAM, MORALS
SQUAD OFFICER,
AGAIN ACCUSED
Boy Says Policeman Abused
Him Because of CON-
plant Filed With Com
missioner Ringer.

warrant was sworn out yesterday
N Justice of the Peace George
S. Collins court for the arrest OF
George Brigham. the city police
man, who with Officer George Arm
strong is under indictment for man.
slaughter in connection with the
murder of Eugene Scott, the Plaza
hotel bell boy.
Policeman Brigham will be ar
rested this afternoon for the second
time in the past week Mr.. Collins
Police Commissioner Ringer alb
solutely has refused to suspend
Brigham and Armstrong while these
two officers are under cloud.
Now Walking Beat.
Encouraged by Mr.. Ringer in the
use OF his lawless tactics, which has
marked the operations of the morals
squad during the past six months,
Officer Brigham, denoted to walk
ing q beat following brief expert
ence on the now extinct Thomas
Sutton clean up" contingent Of the
force, again Thursday night struck
terror into the hearts Of guests at
the Her Grand hotel.
Infuriated because Harry Hersh-
man, 81 years old, driver for the
Blue Taxicab company, filed a COM
plant against him several lays ago
after, he says, the policeman threat
cned his life. Thursday night Brig
ham called on the boy again to kill
him.
After abusing Hershman for 80
minutes, begging him to fight and
offering him every possible insult,
the policeman placed the taxi
driver under arrest on the charge
of soliciting taxi fares OH the street.
Hershman was released on a SIS
bond and fined 81 in police court
Thursday night at Fourteenth and
Ordered Out of Office.
Hershman went to the office of
Chief Eberstein to file another
complaint against the Policeman,
and was ordered out.
Brigham was in the chiefs office
at the time.
Get out of here, you drunken
+ bum," Eberstein is said to have or
dered. IF you come back here with
any more complaints against Officer
Brigham, l will throw you in Jail"
Hershman went directly to the
Office of Justice of the Peace Collins
and sworc out a warrant for the po-
liceman's arrest.
Would Whitewash Him.
Brigham just had finished read
ing in The Bee the account of
Hershman's having filed formal
charges against him for threaten
ing to kill him several days ago,
and of Ringers unsuccessful at
tempt to withhold from the public
the information against the man
the heads of the department are
making desperate efforts to white.
wash for his part in the killing Of
i the negro bell boy.
"You dirty little rat" the officer
/ is said to have hurled at Hersh-
man as he approached him in front
Of the hotel. "You think you can
/, get away with this" he continued.
will beat your face into a jelly
According to the boy, Brigham
offered to take off his badge and
lay aside his club and revolver if
Hershman would fight him. The
boy, who is half the size of the po-
liceman, refused and begged Brig
ham to leave the taxi stand.
Many Witness Scene.
II am the man who was mixed up
in the shooting Of the niger bell
boy" the officer raved while dozen
persons stood by and looked on, &C
cording to witnesses. You are not
going to knock me and get away
with it. / am going to run you
off Sixteenth street. The people are
back of me aud will stay back Of
me.
Il know you will tell Ringer and
the chief about this in the morning.
See how far you get with that stuff
They won't listen to you at the city
hall. You will get kicked out of
the office"
Just as Brigham predicted, Eber.
stein refused to hear the complaint
and threatened to Jail the boy if he
did not stop complaining against
Brigham.
Brigham now is at liberty on a
5000 bond on a charge of man
slaughter.
Faces Federal Charges.
Brigham also is the policeman,
who emptied his revolver short
while ago at supposedly bootleg
ger, who eluded the officer at Sew
enteenth and Jackson streets. The
same policeman was charged with
assaulting the proprietor of a-ho-
tel in South Thirteenth street sew
eral weeks ago, when the hotel man
refused to let the officer arbitrate
difference which had arisen between
himself and one of his guests.
Despite numerous other careless
threats with his revolver. Brigham
was promoted by, Commissioner
Ringer to work Under Paul SUIT
Ton on the morals squad. The
officer worked just one week in one
of the most responsible positions on
the department, and his career
ended as a member of the Clean
up" contingent with the murder OF
Eugene Scott. !
Both Commissioner Ringer and
Chief Eberstein have given their
endorsement to every offense the
policeman was charged with, and
they have gone to every possible ex-
IRENE to defend him. The heads. of
the department, however. were
forced by public opinion to denote
Brigham when the charge of man.
slaughter was placed against him
by County Attorney Shotwell. This
action was reluctantly taken against
the officer. and the police commits