The New York herald., 1921-02-27
81 OFFICE HOLDERS
AWAIT TRIAL; ONE
COURT is PLANNED
Judge Grain Suggests Spe-
cial Calendar to Speed
These Cases.
ONE OPENS TOMORROW
Whitman to Prosecute Two
Cops Accused of Killing
Boy on a Roof.
NEW WITNESSES FOUND
City Employees Under Iudict-
ment Include Hirshfieh,
Lahey, Kilroe and Smith.
NEW WITNESSES FOUND

Judge T. c. T. Grain of General Ses-'
sions will propose to his fellow Judges
this week a plan whereby all the
twenty-one city office holders now un-
der Indictment and others who may
he indicted by the Whitman Grand
Jury could be assured of reasonably
prompt trials. He will suggest that
a special calendar be arranged for
Office holders only.
He feels that as all these men are
on the public payroll, and those under
suspension because of indictments will,
If exonerated, receive pay for the full
time of the suspension, the public in
terest requires speedy determination
of their cases. Some of the trials are
scheduled for the Supreme Court but
ct,uld be transferred to General Ses-
sioAls by agreement of the Judges.
In any event the first Of the Whit
Nan trials, that of Patrolmen Cor
nelius ]. Flood and Robert A. O'Brien,
will be started before Judge Grain to-
morrow. In preparation for it Mr..
Whitman spent nearly three hours
yesterday exploring the roofs Of tene-
ment houses I'm West Fiftieth street
on one of which the boy. James Cush-
ing. whom Flood and O'Brien are ac-
cused of shooting, was killed.
Most Of the Indictments of city SER
wants have sprang from the Whitman
graft inquiry. but some go back much
further. James z. Smith, an Assistant
District Attorney who is helping Mr..
Whitman, was indicted last July by the
Alrnirall Grand Jury, charged with maxi
ing improper use of a Grand Jury sub
pena for the benefit of Charles F. Muir
ply and others indicted IN the glucose
case"
Special Court Planned.
The Almirall jury also indicted David
Hirshheld. Commissioner of Accounts.
Attorney. Hirshfield Is accused OF libel,
and Kilroe of compounding felony.
Kilroe, since the Grand Jury acted, has
not tried any case In the courts. Smith
the Judges will not permit him to prac-
tice in his court as long as the indict-
ment stands. This is said to be the rea-
son the trials OF Augustus d. Porter.
former Deputy Police Commissioner, and
Detectives John j. Gunson, Frederick +.
Franklin and Joseph Maloney have been
held up since early last year. Smith OBJ
tanned all these indictments. Porter was
put on trial last April, but tn jury dis
agreed
The Grand Jury with which Ex-Gov.
Whitman is working has indicted four
teen employees of the city. The highest
of these is William J. Lahey, Chief In
spector of the Police Department The
only trial thus far set is that Of Flood
and OBrien
If the six other General Sessions
Judges accept Judge Grains suggestion
the special calendar will be arranged
either according to priority of rank or
priority Of indictment. Mr.. Whitman's
advice would be sought on this point.
One part of the Court Of General Ses-
sions would handle the trials OF public
officars and nothing else. There are now
six parts OF the court in session stimuli
taneously. but there are seven Judges.
IT is believed that Part could be
created for temporary service.
Whatever arrangement Is made, one
of the accused men cannot go to trial
for long time. Detective William II.
Thompson of the automobile squad. in
dicted for taking a reward unlawfully,
is in bed in the Kings County Hospital
He was wounded and gassed In France,
and after returning to police duty fell
Ill and has had several operations
Visits Scene of Shooting.
Believing that murder verdicts have
sametimes been lost because of the fall
ure of the leading counsel to visit per-
sonally the scene Of the alleged crime,
Mr.. Whitman yesterday studied every
inch Of the roofs on which the Gushing
boy was playing and running from the
policemen when he met his death on
July IA. 1918. He took with his As
sistant District Attorney Smith, Detec-
tive Al Thomas and a photographer.
With the tape and by pacing. many dis
tances we're measured, and pictures were
taken which will be shown to the jury
to help them sisualize the scene when
the policemen fred their revolvers and
the boy fell Three boys who say they
saw the shooting were found and will
testify at the trial When Mr.. Whitman
went to the roofs (the block Is bounded
by Forty-ninth and Fiftieth streets and
Ninth and Tenth avapues. he found boys
trapping p1gcOpr ~ sending UP a decoy,
which returned with other birds.
IL became known yesterday that
agents of the Internal Revenue Depart
mept visited Mr.. Whitman "A few dave
ago TO ask for certain cancelled cheeks
that had come TO him from Meier Stein
brink and were obtained by the latter
In his Investigation of city contracts
for the Board of Estimate.
The revnue men were specially inter-
cstcd in two or three contractors who
are suspected OF falsifying their income
tax returns One OF these men has been
under the scrutiny of Arthur NJ. King
OF Mr. Whitmans staff who has been
looking into city contracts. He called
on King three times and said each
time that he had destroyed his Books
He produced some sort of book for
the internal Revenue agents, but its ac-
counts did not agree with his income
talk returns for 1918 and 1912 The rev.
enue agents think that the cancelled
checks which, II Is understood, they got
from Mr.. Whitman, will help them to
solve their puzzle. The contractor Is
said In the Criminal Court Building to
have had business relations with two
city officers.
Chief Inspector Lahey, although sus-
pended from duty on Thursday, follow
ing his indictment, has been seen about
Police Headquarters since thea.