The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-10-28
CROOKS ARE FREED
BY COURT FRAUD
Justice Kernochan Finds Rec
ords Of Clerks Office Have
Been Changed.
BAIL MONEY RETURNED
Rubber Stamps and Typewriter
Are Used to Avoid Trial
for Suspects.

cess to the office OF Frank Smith, chief
clerk of the Court OF Special Sessions,
is in league with a band Of professional
criminals and has been secretly dlspos
Ing OF papers and altering records to
enable them to escape justice, was an
nounced yesterday by Chief Justice
Frederic Kernochan.
The persons who have profited by this
practice are believed to be members of
an organization of shoplifters that have
been operating here, and who have
forced store owners to form the Stores
Mutual Protective Association, with
William e. Murphy, veteran detective.
at It's head.
Proof that four persons charged with
shoplifting recently had escaped by the
process of having some one in the clerks
Office purlon the complaints In their
cases and that the fraud had been car
rieG TO the extent of arranging the re-
turn OF the cash and Liberty bonds
which had been deposited as bail for
three of them. Ia now in the hands OF the
Justices of the Court OF Special Sessions
and the District Attorney.
Inquiry Under way.
The extent to which this has been
carried Is not yet known, and for the
hext few days Assistant District Attor-
ney Thomas McGrath and other officials
will be very busy with an investigation
OF all of the papers that have passed
through the Court of Special Sessions
for the past five months or more, in which
1t Is believed further frauds on a much
larger scale may be uncovered
The method used by those who aided
the shcplifters was as follows: First, in
order TO prevent cases from appearing
upon the calendar OF the court the papers
were stolen from the files Then, in
oroer that the docket book might not
disclose tho irregularity, a rubber stamp
bearing the inscription sentence sus-
pended" was affixed opposite the entry
of the case. Who ever did this, however,
omitted sn important detail Wherever
such entry is made there should also be
notation In the margin. There was no
such notation after the entries OF the
cases that came to light
In order that return Of bail might
be facilitated the person or persons re-
sponsible for classification of the records
then typewrote an order OF the type
commonly used for return OF cash bail
This order, which was submitted to John
L. HilIy. clerk of the court. for sigma
ture. contained a certificate to the effec.
that the clerk had examined the records
of the case and that the defendant had
received suspension of sentence for
which reason the City Chamberlain was
authc rized to return the amount depos-
tied for bail
This procedure worked in three cases,
the bail Of which aggregated $1,000.
Justice Kernochan stated last night that
Mr.. Hilly was personally responsible and
bound to MAKE good this amount Of
money He 30 stated that he would
call a meeting for to-day OF the Justices
of the Court of Special Sessions, at which
he will prefer charges against Nj. Hilly
for neglect Of duty in failing to look
more carefully into the cases before
signing these certificates. Mr.. Hilly, it
was stated. has been in the habit of
referring to the docket books on such
matters, and the entry there indicating
that sentence had been suspended. he
went no further.
Easy TO Run Down.
Although the identity OF those respon-
sible for the frauds was not known yes
terday, the case is generally looked upon
as an easy one TO run down. Although
there Is no specimen of handwriting on
which to proceed. comparisons will be
made OF the work produced by the Varl-
Gus typewriters In the clerks office and
the individual cha racterist!cs in the type
writing Of the various clerks.
Mr.. McGrath stated last night that
District Attorney Swami would have the
case placed before the Grand Jury in
the very near future, and that it is be-
lieved that the bondsmen in the cases
will be easily located and called upon
to tell what they know of the matter.
Justice Kernochan In announcing how
the frauds first came TO his attention
said: "On October Is last my attention
was drawn 10 the fact that a case which
should have appeared upon the court
calendar charging the defendant with
petit larceny or shoplifting, had not ap-
peared. and therefore was not disposed
of. An investigation was made, and II
was discovered that our docket boob
showed that this case had been disposed
of on October /, 1919, by a suspended
sentence. A search for the papers was
made and they could not be found An
examination OF the court calendars for
October and the minutes OF the Court
showed that the case had never been
Of.
"A further investigation was made.
and II was discovered that three other
cases. involving four defendants were in
a similar manner marked In the dockel
book disposed OF by suspension OF SEN
tence. when examination OF the calen-
OARS and minutes showed that they had
never been disposed of. The iHvestiga-
ton also showed that the papers had
been lost in two OF these cases involving
three defendants. and although similar
false entry had been made In one OF
these cases, the papers were not dis
turbed and tho trial was still pending
when this situation dev 'oped an in
ventory OF all live cases actions pend
ing trial) was made on . tober IL 1919.
and no further irregu trities were dis
covered. At the present time an inven-
tory IL being made OF all cases disposed
OF by the court since October 1, 1918. up
TO date, and the papers are being COM
pared with the court records. This can
not be completed for few days. 1t has
Doen impossible as yet to form any
opinion as to who is guilty in these mat.
with rubber stamps and the orders upon
which the cash bail was returned were
typewriter"
The discovery on October Is came
about through the rearrest OF shop
litter whose case had been fraudulently
disposed Of The card index in the Dis
trict Attorneys ONCE and the records of
Detective Murphy and of the Stores Mu-
tual Protective Association. both showed
that the former complaint had not been
of. while the court records indi-
Gated the contrary
DEATH BARES HARVARD GIFT.