The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1920-12-22
NASSAU GAMBLING
TRIAL BARESPAST
OF REFORM Re-! 0lRE!!I AGENT
Fleischer Admits He Was
Disbarred as Lawyer in
Massachusetts,.
ACCUSED BY II CLIENTS
Jackson Says Shaughnessy
Didn't Know Alleged
Raid Tip Sender.
DAY MOSTLY OF DENIALS
WysOng Tells How Assembly,
man McWhinney Bawled
Him Out in Albany.
BY II CLIENTS
DAY MOSTLY OF DENIALS

John N. Fleischer, principal wit
of the four Nassau officials who are
on trial in the Supreme Court at
Mineola for conspiracy to protect pro-
fessional gamblers, had a bad quarter
hour with his past yesterday when
Henry A. Uterhart, chief counsel for
the defence. took him in hand on cross
examination and forced him to admit
that he had practised law in Massa-
chusetts and had been disbarred.
Fleischer is associate secretary of
the Nassau County Association, an or
ganization having on its membership
lists most of those names which the
average mind associates offhand with
the Piping Rock Club.
The four officials who are being tried
are Assemblyman Thomas A. McWhin-
ney. Sheriff Charles w. Smith. Super
visor G. Wilbur Doughty and Postmas-
ter Thomas III. O'Keefe OF Oyster Bay.
Fleischer occupying the witness stand
Monday, mentioned all four OF them In
a recital Of damaging admission by Of
ficials and attempts to control and bride
him.
In beginning his testimony for the
State he had told Of his early education
and his subsequent matriculaton at
Harvard University. 1t was while he
was being reexamined on his scholastic
advantages yesterday that Mr.. uterhart
compelled him to admit that he had sup
plemented his collegiate education with
one In the law.
Mt Uterhart after examining Flei-
scher upon all those matters which had
formed the sequential chain of his main
testimony confronted him suddenly with
the record of a Massachusetts court, In
which 1t was set forth that Fleischer
had collected money for clients in eleven
instances and had failed to turn 1t over
to them and that in the Judgment OF
the court he was not a proper person
to be permitted to practise at the bar
of the commonwealth. F'leischer, before
the introduction of the record, had him.
self heightened its effect by denying that
he ever had practised law to any cx-
tent Also a second record of his APP
plication for admission to the Massa-
chusetts bar, set forth that he declared
himself to have been born in 1876,
whereas he previously had testified that
he was born In 1874.
AS further corroboration of Fleischer
yesterday negro who was once ION the
door, at John Shaughnesseys country
club at Lynbrook, and whose given name
Of Sherman Allen Jackson has long since
been supplanted by the professional
monaker of Spider Jackson, went to the
witness stand and said that the defen-
dant @. Wilbur Doughty had sent him
word through one David Weiss. manager
of the Blossomheath Inn, In the Merrick
road. to close Shaughnessey's house for
the night, as n raid was coming off.
But on cross examination Spider Jack
son took all the kick out OF this. Asked
what Shaughnessey said when informed
that Doughty (malntained in the presen,
prosecution to have been receiving tri5-
ute from him) had forwarded word that
he was to close. the Spider replied:
"Mr. Shaughnessey said, 4 don't know
this man Doughty. Who the hell is
DoughtyT"
The day ended with denial by
Charles n. Wysong, former District At
torney. that he ever had told the present
District Attorney. Charles X. Weeks.
whore he would find gambling houses
and who operated them. Mr.. Wysong
testified also that Assemblyman Nc
Whitney ''bawled him out" at Albany in
something like the following phraseol-
ogy;
what do you mean by horning In on
this gambling business? You're helluva
feia. Here you represent John Shaugh-
Messy as his mouthpiece when his place
is pulled, and then the next time YOU
hear OF some one else opening house
you 20 turn it in to Charley Weeks"
Were those his exact words?" asked
defences counsel on cross examination.
mo-" was Mr.. Wysong's reply. only
words to that effect. Tom McWhinney
talks so much that no one has ever re-
rnembered his exact words"
II was just after IL was announced
that McWhinney would testify In his
own defence that the court announced
IL would hold night sessions for the rest
OF the trial to get through before Christ
mas