Palisadian. [volume] (Cliffside Park, N.J.) 1906-current, 1921-02-19

Walter Flack who was shot in his
room at his home in PaliSade February
4, by Herman Borgstede, his personal
tai last Sunday about midnight. His
family was not present. The body was
removed to the Flack home on Monday
BorgStede was taken into custody by
direction of County Prosecutor A. c.
Hart, at 10 80 Sunday morning for an
den which was held at the Borgstede
home. DR.. Ogden could not find any
trace of dementia, and Borgstedes
father testified that the young man
had never shown any signs of being
mentally unbalanced. Herman who
now admits doing the shooting, said
the killing was the result of an acct
dent.
The mysteries of this case are still
unsolved There were no other per-
sons present when the shooting took
place, and after being taken by the
police Borgstede said that they were
practicing hip shooting and that Flack
in trying to show Borgstede how he
was wrong in his side of the demon
stration, accidentally discharged the
pistol himself and fell across his bed
in his own room, unconscious. Asked
if this were true, Flack said "Yes," and
on the strength of this statement,
Borgstede was released as material
witness on bond of $1,000, cash
furnished by his father, as already
published, returning to his home which
he had not occupied for some months,
the report being that he had been
turned out because of peculiar conduct
This report has been stoutly denied by
members of the family. There has
been doubt expressed that Borgstede
was entirely normal.
AS already stated, the mysteries of
the case are so numerous that no
one can tell the positive facts be-
cause nothing can be accurately veri-
fed. The general public is inclined
to the belief that the shooting was
accidental, yet this does not at all
coincide with the first statements
made by the wounded boy, verified by
him before reputable witnesses, and
later changed by the man who himself
has admitted that he fired the fatal
shot by accident. 1t was on this latter
admission that Borgstede was later
charged with "atrocious assault" and
his bail raised to $1,000. If the case
had been left where it was in the first
place, BOrgstede had all the testimony
to free him from any possible blame.
But here came the mother of Flack
who, still believing that Borgstede
might have shot her son, and never for
a moment accepting the belief that he
shot himself, went to- Borgstede and
got him to admit that he had fired the
shot at a distance of five feet.
The statement has been made that
Borgstede had applied for permit to
carry a pistol, but the permit had not
been issued. He therefore carried it
into the Flack home against the law,
and to this extent is culpable. Mrs.
Flack had asked him not to bring fire.
arms in her house Some members of
the Flack family have expressed the
belief that if Borgstede really did shoot
Walter while under temporary abbera-
ton of the mind, it was because he for
the moment lost sight of Walter Flack
in the room, and seeing only some
imaginary enemy, let loose and shot
without knowing what was happening.
Under the dementia theory this seems
the most likely thing to accept in the
circumstances. Major Flack says
Borgstede called at his home last Sat
urday and said he did not know why
he had fired or pulled the trigger, as
he put it.
Here are some of the things con-
nected with the Borgstede case that
are not generally known:
He came home from the war rup-
tured, and was subject to much pain
from this source, and once tainted at
a party in a Palisade home. He was
later operated on for this trouble
He told Elizabeth, the family cook
at the Flaek's home, the day of the
shooting, she says, that he had shot
Walter, but he later changed this and
said that Walter had shot himself ac-
cidentally. Flack verified this, but
later told his wife while in the hos
pital that he had lied like fool to
save Herman"
In the hospital Flack begged his wife
twice not to allow Herman to come
to see him. meaning that he was afraid
of him, so Mrs. Flack thinks.
before the shooting on some of Wal
ter Flack's letter paper, to a young
lady, which was full of gloom and
disheartening talk. This letter was
found by Mrs. Major Flack and turned