The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1920-04-02
JAIL SCANDAL
PUTS SHERIFF
OUT OF RACE
Revolving Testimony Intro.
duced Into Investigation of
Marion County Lock-Up-
Jury May Investigate.
INSANE MAN IS Beaten

i4Nblfh->HI ol<iSS liio', HPiAi
Former prisoners and employees in the
Marion County jail were placed on the
witness stand in the federal court to-
day in the investigation being made of
conditions at the Jail. One of the wit
nesses scheduled to testify was Puss
Meinert, manager of the Evansville
street cleaning department, formerly
cell boss in the Jail, who is said to
have received hundreds of dollars as
a "rake-off" on poker and rhum games
played by the prisoners with the per-
mission of Jail attaches.
While the food served to federal
prisoners and the treatment they re-
ceived apparently have been the pr1-
mary things in the minds of the fed
eral officials during the investigation,
the testimony of the prisoners has
brought to light facts that probably
will be submitted to both the federal
and the county grand juries.
No Defense Is Offered.
Robert F. Miller, the sheriff, takes
the stand that the whole matter Is
one for grand jury investigation and
he has offered no defense thus far In
the investigation.
The fact that Miller is a candidate
for the Republican denomination for
sheriff has resulted in a change in
the local political situation.
1t is realized by most of the local
party leaders and candidates for
places on the Republican ticket. that
the revelations of shocking conditions
at the Jail, which is directly under
| Miller's supervision, makes it undesir-
able that the Republican leaders and
candidates should stand sponsor for
him as a candidate.
Opinion Favors Snyder.
Since the federal court proceedings
| began, numerous conferences have
| been held by Republican workers, and
| the prevailing opinion seems to be
| that the influence of the leaders will
F.! be used for the benefit of the candi-
dacy of George Snyder for the Repub-
lican nomination for sheriff.
A suggestion that the federal gov
| ernment may have been defra uded ir
the case of the prisoners was made
Thursday by Judge Anderson, when
the district attorney, Frederick Van
Nuys, said that the sheriff of Marion
county had received more than SIT, ,00C
in 1919 for the feeding of the prisoners
! and that the amount expended for the
feeding probably was not more than
half that. The question of fraud rests
it is indicated, on the character of the
| contract between the federal govern
ment and the county.
Cook Describes Food
A revolving description of the fooC
| given to prisoners in the Jail and o
the manner of it's preparation, told il
detail by the Jail cook, John Nicolini
and a reversal of testimony by Jacl
Hampton, of Evansville, cell boss
in the Jail, were principal points
brought out Thursday by Judge An
derson in the investigation.
One witness asserted that within
the last few weeks an insane man wa!
beaten by jailers until he was so veal
he could not stand, after which he wa
left for several days lying on the floo
of his cell, until finally he and the Gel
were cleaned by means of hose ant
cold water. The insane man died two
or three days after this treatment. i
| was asserted.
Man Died in Hospital
A private investigation of the rec
ords of the county coroner, the su
perintendent of the Central Indian;
Hospital for the Insane, and the turn
key at the Jail showed that an in
sane man might have been the on'
whom a witness at the federal cour
investigation said had been brutal,
mistreated, was taken from the jai
to the insane hospital March anc
died a short time after his arriva
there.
The records Of Dr. George Eder
harter, superintendent of the insan
hospital, show Bowen had several oil
scars on his body. The turkeys rec
ords show that Bowen was admitte
to the Jail February 10.