Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1920-06-04
WANTS TO KNOW
WHO'S TO BLAME
Continued From Page one.)

proaCned and for that service Melnerc
would give him tobacco.
Dirk testified that he had a set of
signals to warn the players when a
guard approached.
Dirk testified that he saw Meinert
turn over some of the "rakeoff'' money
to John Hampton, cell boss.
John Fisher testified that he say gam
bling going on on the third floor of the
jail and also described the ceremony
of pinning the star on "Puss" Meinert
and his 'sidekick,' a man by the name
Of Farmer.
Otta Mckay, a jeweler OF Terre Haute
and a former federal prisoner at the
JAIL was on the witness stand for nearly
! two hours and gave a detailed descrip-
ton of the methods used in conducting
the poker games at the jail.
"Meinert ran the game and took the
checkof or rakeoff, put the cards on the
table, placed the blanket on the table
and arranged the chairs and also In
vited the boys to play" testified Nc
Kay.
Mckay said Meinert would announce
a game in this fashion:
Come on, you fellows, get ready for
the game"
Mckay told of Meinert taking a Scent
"rakeon" and testified that the 'rakeof"
aggregated from SO to SIS a night.
Mckay told of VanCIeave and Kemp
coming up to one of the cell doors and
that Meinert warned the boys to be care
full when the deputies came upstairs, as
he did not want to give the deputies the
worst of IL.
On cross examination. Mckay testified
that Meinert split the "rakeof" with Cell
Boss Hampton.
Mckay said poker was played before
Meinert became assistant cell boss, but
after Aleinert was elevated to that posi-
ton a "rakeon' was taken from the
game.
The defense indicated that McKay's
direct testimony concerning the size Of
the rakeoff each night was improbable
to be realized because the game did not
continue long enough to make that much
Of a rakeoff at scent rakeoff
The defense attempted to show that I'll
feeling ~existed between Mckay and
''Puss" Meinert, but this the witness
would not admit
| lie did admit that there was n system
of signals used by a lookout"
'AIeinert said that he didn't want
| things to look too plain so as to give
/ the jailers the worst Of it, testified Nc
/ KAY.
Attorney Ira Holmes asked, Were you
compelled to play poker?"
/ Mckay answered. Yes, in certain
way"
/ The first proof OF gambling having
/ existed In the Marion county Jail was
/ given by Carl thinner. a young transfer
man Of South Bend Ind. who formerly
/ served a sentence for violating the fed
4 eral liquor laws.
! thinner testified that when he arrived
I ~ anH re ( 10 81 70 fok a un a
4 temporary residence there, be had five
/ decks Of cards.
He said that Adrian Van Cleave. former
deputy sheriff at the jail. admitted him.
/ Il had five decks Of cards IN my travel
/ ing bag and Van Cleave asked me why |
wanted so many" testified thinner
/ Continuing he said Il told him that l
/ wanted to pass away the time and Van
/ Cleave said that they had plenty OF cards
/ up there because they played poker
every night"
/ The cards were taken away from
/ thinner at that time, but shortly on
/ reaching the third door, "Puss' Meinert,
assistant call boss and another prisoner,
/ told him about the poker games and
warned thinner not to tell the screws
according 10 the witness.
thinner explained that screws" re-
| ferred TO the jail guards.
In describing gambling on the third
/ floor Of the jail among the prisoners,
/ thinner said that about 3 o'clock on the
/ first evening be was In JAN, "Puss
I Meinert carried a blanket and deck OF
/ ca rds to a table behind a stack of mat
] tresses and that a poker game was be-
/ gun.
/ He told of money being on the table
and described rules governing the poker
game in the jail
/ Those who sat IN" on the poker game
/ on the first night that thinner was IN
/ jail we're Jim Boner Of Evansville. Ind,
! Charles Burstein, Gene Bamoacher'
George Roth and other prisoners in the
federal wing Of the jail on the third
/ floor
| In answer to a question put to him
| by Prosecutor Claris Adams, thinner tes-
! tiaed that Meinert told him tnat he had
| 10 divide the rake or with the
| screws downstairs.
| thinner testified that the poker games
| continued over a period Of about i've
weeks and that the boys stopped play
ing because they figured they would
! be broke by Meinert taking the rake
/ of"
'Meinert took the rake or" testified
/ thinner. Every hand up, Meinert would
/ take cents"
no limit and sgain the limit was II or
! 30 cents on the game.
He said that when he stopped playing
in the Jail he was S4.15 ahead Of the
game.
thinner testified that Van Cleave and
Frank Kamp, also a former deputy, who
IS ono OF the defendants, came 20 the
door of the cellroom where the prisoners
we're playing poker for money and that
the game continued.
on cross examination, Attorney Ira
Holmes for the defense, succeeded In get
ling thinner TO admit that when Van
Cleave came upstairs during the progress
of the game that he was a hundred feet
distant from the game and that two tall
prisoners stood up in front of the table
in an effort to shelter the game.
According to thinner, "Puss" Meinert
one of the defendants on trial and
former assistant cell boss, managed the
game. but that John Hampton, the
principal witness for the state who failed
to appear, was the cell boss.
The defense scored a point when Zim-
mer admitted on cross-examination that
Uncle" Charlie WhiCsell, a former jail
employe, with other deputies, searched
the federal row for cards and that sew
eral decks were taken away by the
deputies
thinner admitted that new decks were
obtained by lowering a sack out of a
window and then hauling up the sack by
string after the cards were placed in
the sack.
Training Ship