Evening star., 1925-02-03
VICE SQUAD HEADS
OPPOSE M'MAHON
Davis and McQuade Hit
Judges Dry Enforcement
at Nomination Hearing.

The nomination of Judge John p.
Mcmahon to succeed himself as
Police Court judge in the District of
Columbia was vigorously attacked
today before the Senate judiciary
subcommittee by members of the
metropolitan police vice squad. rep
resentatives of church and temper
ance organizations and Robert 1.
Miller. attorney.
Lieut.. O T. Davis, head of the vice
squad. testified that Judge Mcmahon
has failed to cooperate with the
police and has shown open hostility
to the police department. Lieut..
Davis spoke particularly of the
handling of prohibition cases. Judge
Mcmahon, he said, was lacking in ad-
ministrative ability and the dignity
which should go with his office and
was narrow in handling cases.
Prejudice IL Charged.
In reply to qhestions by Senator
Caraway of Arkansas, a member OF
the subcommittee. Lieut. Davis sale
that Judge Mcmahon was influenced
consciously or unconsciously, II
some of the cases that came before
him. He referred particularly to {
case against Julius Lansburgh
charged with violating the prohibi
tion law, and of a negro arrested
twice for bootlegging, whom he sait
was intcrceded for by friends of th'
| judge.
Some of the cases before Judge Nc
| Mahon have been delayed as long a
| three years. the witness testified. Ht
| charged that the judge has ''muzzle'
| the prosecutor and taken upon him
| self the setting of dates for trial.
! For trivial reasons the judge has con
| tinued eases at the request of defend
ants, but if police officers are 10 or l.
minutes late after being on duty al
night he has dismissed cases.
Friction is Alleged.
In reply to a question by Senato
Caraway Davis said that there mac
heen no friction between the Police De
partment and the Police Court until Nc
Mahon went on the bench.
! Sergt. James McQuade. also of thu
vice squad. backed up in a general wa.
the testimony given by Lieut. Davis.
| Deets Pickett, representing the boart
| of temperance prohibition and pubic
| morals of the Methodist Episcopa
| Church, protested against confirmation
| of Judge McAIahon's nomination. H'
| told the committee that prohibition en-
| forcement in the District has been ia
from satisfactory. This fact, he said
| has been heralded throughout the coun
| try TO an extent which has brought un
! due and unjust suspicion upon lndlVid
! uals and groups and various branche
| of the Government. and has shaken tn
| faith of the public in the sincere purpos
| of the Federal Government to entorc
the prohibition law.
| Accused by Pickett.
| This relative failure to entorc
| effectively the prohibition law in tn
District of Columbia has been du
to various things" said Mr. Pickett
but principally the administratio
of the affairs of the Police Court b
! Judge John p Mcmahon.
! $50 serious has been the handlln
of prohibition cases by this cour
that it would hardly be unfair to sa
| that it constitutes practically
| license system. Under the Jones
Works excise law for the District G
Columbia, the license fee was sl,o0
annually. The average fine impose
! by Judge Mcmahon in 79O cases fro1
| January, 1922, to August, 1924, wa
| s64.49, which is considerably les
than one-half the average fine for tn
United States as whole An e1
animation of the records seems
disclose that of 1.449 cases tried oni
lot received Jail sentences whic
were served and the average tim
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