Douglas daily dispatch., 1926-10-05
HIS
WORK DONE IN
CITY N JUNE

| HALL OF JU STICE,
LOS ANGELES, Oct. 4
J! (AP) - Joe Ryan, deputy
district attorney Of Los An
geles county, whom Aimee
Semple Mcpherson, evange-
list, has denounced repeat
edly over her temple radio
as her prosecutor, faced her
today from the witne $ $
box in her preliminary hear
ing: on charges Of criminal
conspiracy.
: In detached methodicai tones, Ryan
recounted his part in the investigation
of Mrs. McPhersons story-that she
was kidnapped at the Santa Monica
beach May IS last and escaped from
her captors on the Mexican desert on
June 23.
The deputy district attorney, over
bitter opposition of w. /. Gilbert, chief
of defense counsel, took up the tale
from his first meeting with the evan
gelist in the Dougsas, Arizona, hospital
| following her arrival there from the
desert; went over the futile search for
1.-THE shack in which she said she was
held below the Mexican border, and
wound UP with a comment on cosmetics
which he said the woman pastor used
on the train to make dark circles un-
der her eyes just before her return to
Los Angeles.
He recalled from the desert sands
heel prints beside automobile tracks,
which he swore were identical with the
heels on the shoes Mrs. Mcpherson
wore when she arrived at Douglas. The
prosecution contends that the Temple
pastor, engineering d kidnapping hoax,
had herself taken to the desert in an
automobile to start her walk into
Douglas, Ryan identified other arti-
cles of clothing worn by Mrs. McPher-
son after reaching Douglas, illustrated
with a map his different fruitless ex-
cursions into Mexico looking for the
4 prison shack described by the defend
ant, and denied that the evangelist
! .lshowed any i'll effects of her "15 or
20 mile" trip afoot across the mids0m-
mer sands of the Mexican waste.
Ryan, in the afternoon session, told
of a trip to Ocean Park with the evan
gelist. She pointed out the place on
the beach where she erected her beach
tent and the place where the 'Hkidnap-
ing car was parked. Ryan then told OF
a trip to Oakland and vicinity looking
for the famous "Aimee safe" telegram
"The DIR. Merton" telegram of May
l21, addressed to Mrs. Kennedy at An
!, gelus Temple and sent from Oakland
was the subject of a three-cornered
battle around the counsel table. At
btorney Gilbert objected when Ryan was
asked about his search for the sender
of the message. Judge Blake held the
grand jury testimony of Mrs. Minnie
Kennedy connected up the telegram
with the case, and Ryan was permitted
to answer.
He said the address was fictitious.
!, Ryan then told of his trip to Carmel
He said he reached there July 25 anG
went directly to the Benedict cottage
on Scenic Drive, where the state
charges Mrs Mcpherson with living ir
hiding with Kenneth G. Ormiston, for.
: mer Angelus Temple radio operator
He said he found at the cottage on the
next day some grocery slips, a bottle
of witch hazel, a bottle of petroleum
: and some Los Angeles newspapers.
The grocery slips, he said, were
t found outside the kitchen door of thu
: cottage He also found a radio set anC
six books.
He turned the grocery slips over t.
last time he saw them they were in th'
possession of Mrs. Edith Holmes, on
S of the jurors, he said
5 Ryan identified photograph Of tn
: grocery slips which disappeared in tn
r grand jury room.
The question of whether it was nee
+ essary to produce the photographer 70
laying a foundation for introduction o
the picture came up and Judge Blak
reached for his code book. He rule,
: that it was not pecessary to produc
c the photographer, but the prosecution
would have to establish the fact in tn
= records that the slips were lost.
Ryan did answer by reciting tn
e story of the lost slips and the officia
f Investigation which followed Rya
p" told of being on the stand in the gran
jury room and passing out the gro
Q Gerry slips to w. Fl. Carter, foreman
y They were passed around until the
|, reached Mrs Holmes, and disappeared
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