The Washington herald., 1922-04-04
Architect and 4 Others to
Be Prosecuted Before
June, Is Pledge.
WILL FACE CHARGE
OF MANSLAUGHTER
Indicted Men Will Be
Arraigned in Week
y
Or Ten Days.

VIII be started in Criminal Court
before the June adjournment
This was the pledge made by Unit
ed States District Attorney Peyton
Gordon. yesterday, after Indictments
charging manslaughter had been re-
turned by the District grand jury
against five of the nine men held
by the coroner's jury in connection
with the disastrous crash.
Architect L. Indicted.
Those Jointly charged in the in
dictment, and who will be Jointly
tried on the manslaughter count
are:
Reginald w. Geare, supervising ar
| chitect, who designed the wrecked
theater.
John Howard Ford, general mana
ger of the Union Iron Works, this
| city, who designed and furnishe ed
the steel roof framing which col.
lapsed.
Richard G. Fletcher. at the time
of the theater's construction locai
manager of the Hammett Fire
Proofing Company. who contracted
for the hollow tile used in the walls
of the structure.
Julian r. Downman, reinforced
concrete Inspector in the District
Building Department. who inspected
the building during the course OF
construction.
Donald Wallace. general foreman
for the contractor. Frank L. Wag-
ner, who was in charge of the gen
eral erection Of the Inflated. build
ing.
5000 Bond to He Asked.
The accused men will be ar
raigned in Crimianl Court within
the next week or ten days to enter
pleas, at which time their bonds
will be fixed at 5000. the same as
was demanded 1T the time W the
coroner's july verdict.
"A speedy trial will be had In
this case" declared District Attor-
ney Gordon, last night, "for II -
one of utmost Importance. and one
for which the people are asking q
decision.
"No effort will be spared In the
prosecution, which will be under.
way before the summe. adjourn.
ment OF the criminal branch Of the
courts. which becomes effective
sometime during the month OF June
To he Tried Jointly.
The five men have been indicted
to trial in the same manner, but
that will have no effect on the
prosecution, for the case, believe,
is as strong against one as it is
the other"
The trial is expected to be one
of the most sensational in the his
tory Of the District courts, rs sew
eral Of the victims Of tho tragedy
which occurred on the night OF
January 2S, were prominent in
Washington social and oiIicia,
circles.
Although the indictment was
specifically based on the death OF
Marv E. Atkinson. who Is one of the
ninety-seven persons whose life was
beaten out under tons of concrete
and steel when the, roof of the the
ater building collapsed. it -efers to
the many others who suffered a
like fate.
The witnesses who will be sum-
moned to testify during the trial
probably will include greater
number of experts than ever has
appeared in any court in the coun.
try, for the leading architects
builders and scientists in civilian
and army circles were included
among those who conducted the in.
vestigations after the dead had beer
removed from the debris.
Persons who were in the theater
at the time of the crash, and who
were buried beneath the wreckage
for many hours before they could
be rescued, are also expected to be
summoned to give testimony.
The maximum penalty is fifteen
years Imprisonment.
Gross Negligence Charged. :
After pointing out that the coll
lapse of the roof was "the immed-
late and inevitable result of gross
negligence and want of skill'' in
construction. the final paragraph of
the Indictment reads as follows:
That they. the said Reginald w
Geare, and the said John H. Ford
and the said Richard G. Fletcher
and the said Donald NJ. Wallace. and
the said Julian r. Downman, her
the said Mary Ethel Atkinson, In
the manner and by the means afore-
said, on the Twenty eighth day @
January. 1922, and at the Distr
of Columbia aforesaid. feloniously
and unlawful1y die kill and slay,
and SO did then and there commit
manslaughter against the form of
statute In such case made and pro-
vided, and against the peace and
government Of the said United
State
The Indictment charges that the
five men accused of the disaster
failed to cooperate properly in the
construction of the building and
that they through several and Joint
failures and netlects" jeopardized d
the lives of the hundreds of persons
who entered the theater daily after
its completion on February 81, 1918.
Revised Code Urged.
In submitting the indictment. the
grand jury, recommended that the
building code of the District be
revised and that Congress provide
larger appropriations for the Dis
trict building department, to en-
able the employment Of more
skilled inspectors.
The recommendation signed by
Martin Mcoaade. foreman of the
jury. reads:
we. the members of the grand
jury Of the January. 1872, term,
ContinHed On Page Three.