Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1923-01-26
BOARDWALK ROBBERY CASE CLEANED UP
AND PRISONERS SENTENCED FROM
TWO TO THREE YEARS EACH
Wildwood Police Complimented on Their Good
Work. Judge Eldredge ReverSes Decision of
Lower Court in the Pohlig Case

crowd of friends, had no former rec
ord, and that any crime that might
have been committed was probably
done more in the form of a boyish
joke or prank. Here Judge Eldredge
interrupted him and said: "An act of
this kind committed at 4 A. M. is no
boyish prank, Mr.. Sooy." Lawyer
Sooy continued telling how one of
these boys had a widowed mother who
depended on him and how if they were
not sent to a penal institution, but
given a chance, that a Philadelphia
magistrate had promised to keep an
eye on them and to make them go
straight in the future.
Lawyer Leap, Of the firm of Leap,
Sharpless & Way, now spoke for Jack
Conley. He told of first seeing Conley
and how Conley had, without any
promise of leniency from either him
self or Prosecutor Solan, told the.
whole truth in the matter. He hen
told about Conley being the only son
in a family of seven children. The
next Oldest child is his Is year old
sister. His father has been dead seven
years and his mother has only a
small amount of money. Conley came
to Wildwood last summer intending
to get a job with the Wildwood beach
force, Leap stated, and not succeeding,
met the crowd in the Wayne pool
room. Trouble was the inevitable re-
suit of these acquaintance. He told
how Conley had been a great aid to
the prosecution of the state and how
he, himself, had taken a special inter-
est in the case because of the fact that
Conley's mother was in a sick bed
with six children to support. He
closed by saying that Conley was no
angel, for he had had some other for
mer trouble-he had seen the light
and was ready to reform, stood before
Frhe2eourt asking for any possible le-
niency, although admitting his guilt;
also admitting his aid to the state.
Lawyer Leap advised that the penalty
inflicted should be one to come out
of Conley's pocket and SO give him a
chance. He closed by saying that
Honor among thieves" makes the
man who tells the state information a
SNAKE" but that the state often de-
Ponds on the honesty of some crimi-
nal to bring to justice the offenders.
He quoted the Brunen cast and com
pared the action in that case to that
in the Rosetta Shop robbery, asking
for ~leniency for his client on behalf
of the court.
Prosecutor Solan, who has done
much hard work on this case, now
made his short talk to the court. He
said the preceding remarks had been
but appeals for mercy and that he
realized it was in the power of the
judge to grant this mercy or not as
he desired. He said there were a few
facts that should be considered. First,
there was the fact that no arrests in
the case had come about until two or
three weeks following the robbery.
The bringing to justice at that time
of some of the prisoners was possible
through the very good work of the
Wildwood police officials, who pre-
scented him with a list of IA possible
III LII hO suns Oobo "
lowed. Four men then gave self-im-
plica$ing testimony. The Petit Jury
had found Conley's story the only one
containing all the real truth. 81 don't
mean to doubt the words of the gen
tlemen who have just spoken before
me, but in my own mind there is no
doubt of the guilt of the men in the
case said he. He then mentioned how
he could have made a precedent of
"nolle pros" in the case of Conley, but
that he had not lone so. He therefore
asked consideration of the court for
Conley because of the fact that with
out his testimony it would have been
very difficult to have brought the case
to trial.
Judge Eldredge now asked Prosecu-
tor Solan if he had any suggestions
to make in the passing of sentence or
the various offenders. Mr.. Solan stated
that he was in no position to give adj
vice along these lines, but feels that
it rests entirely in the hands of the
court to decide on the matter. Judge
Eldredge said: Well, you differ from
the defense, for they are indeed gener-
Gus in suggestions"
Lawyers McHenry, Bonnell and
Lloyd now made a short speech of
final rebuttal to the court, after which
Judge Eldredge called the defendants
to the railing in front of him and
said: 81 do not want any mistaken
belief that I am shifting the power of
sentence from the bench. My view is,
after hearing the side of the state and
the most eloquent pleas of the defense
attorneys, that you are a crowd that
spent the entire summer at the sea-
shore as ordinary l~oafers, with the ex-