New Britain herald., 1926-09-22
JAIL THREAT FOR i WOMAN VIOLATOR
Police Tell of Difficulty in Raid
 on Store

Mrs. Adelin Freiheit, aged S6, of
 sil Church street, was found guilty
 on three counts of violation of the
 liquor law and fined S200 and costs
 with a suspended jail sentence of 80
 days by Judge B. w, filling in po-
 lice court this morning after a
 lengthy hearing.
 In passing sentence Judge filling
 said Mrs. Freiheit will go to jail if
 convicted of violation of the liquor
 law again. Attorney NJ, A. Sexton
 represented Mrs. Freiheit who plead
 ed not guilty. Assistant Prosecuting
 Attorney W. NJ. Greenstein presented
 the states case.
 Detective Sergeant Ellinger testi-
 fled that he and Sergeant O'Mara
 and Officer Stadler went to Mrs.
 Freiheit's store on September II with a warrant to search the prem
 ises. After a delay they were ad- mitted to the tenement behind the store and seized a quantity of cider which was found to contain 5.05 per cent alcohol by volume and 2.44 per cent alcohol by weight. On Septem- Der Is Sergeant Ellinger and Officer Stadler went to serve a warrant on Mrs. Freiheit to appear in court.
 As they entered the tenement, Mrs. Freiheits son called: Dump it, dump it." A can containing alcohol was found on the bathroom floor. Charges of keeping liquor with in tent to sell and maintaining place where 1t Is reputed liquor is sold. were preferred as the result of the first raid and the charge of keeping liquor with intent to sell was pre- ferred as the result of the second visit.
 Attorney Sexton questioned Ser eeant Ellinger as to the extent of police observation Of the place.
 The sergeant said 1t Is difficult task to catch the Freiheits selling cider or liquor because they cause such a fuss oyer the serving of the search warrant that by the time the warrant is read the liquid Is in the sewer. Attorney Sexton asked why the police do not send their agents to the place if the reputation is as notorious as the assistant prosecuting attorney claimed. MT. Greenstein interrupted to say that he had not said anything about the place. Ser xean Ellinger said he would send agents there if he could arrange it.
 Attorney Sexton asked if there IS . scarcity of agents and MT. Green stein interrupted to say that is question of police procedure. Ques- tioned as to his statement that men of drinking habits frequent the store Sergeant Elinger said he knows one man by name whom he has seen in several places where liquor ls sold. He named the man when the defense attorney asked him to- Asked if he had ever seen the man intoxicated the sergeant re- piled negatively. Asked If he had ever had a drink with this man, the sergeant replied negatively.
 Sergeant O'Mara testified to talk ing part in the raid on September 14. While the officers were wait ing in the hallway for the door to be opened, he heard water running in the sink and the bathroom. The smell of kerosene was strong in the sink and a sample of liquor taken out of the sink did not show suf- ficient alcoholic content for prosecu- tion. Sergeant O'Mara said 1t is ! common to hear water running in tencments as the police wait to be admitted.
 Officer Stadler testified that at noon on September he saw several men of drinking habits enter and leave the store. They included laundry truck driver, molders and others. Some stayed a few minutes and others several minutes. On September 14 hs took part In the raid and found one glass jug Of cider under two boxes Of beer In the kitchen and two other glass Hugs of cider in the icebox in the store. He heard Mrs. F'reihelt tell Sergeant Ellinger she sold the cider for 10 cents a drink.
 There are two buzzers in the store to signal to the tenement when the police come, the witness said. Asked why he did not send an agent into the store when he saw the customers going in Officer Stadler said 1t IS not easy to employ agents and he knew Mrs. Freiheit would not sell him personally any drink.
 -tt {,, rar1,- fn httnr- hey Sexton said she bought cider at a Pennington mill on August 24. It was sweet cider when she bought IL.
 Describing the raid she said the police hammered at the door, They did not knock gently. She did not know 1t was the police until her boarder opened the door. The req son she did not open the door was she was busy washing the dinner d fishes. She does not always leave the dishes unwa5hed until p. m. but on this particular day she was busy in the store all afternoon and ' bad not had a chance to wash them.
 The reason the door ts Der fena- ment is locked, chained and bolted Is that these fixtures were there |, when she bought the property. She lid not sell the cider because it did not have a good taste. She did not tell the police she charge 10 cents , |, drink because they djd not ask her, she claimed. The alcohol was , brought home from SouthS-5ton by I 1er husband. who got it from nan named Joe" she testified.
 At one point during the eXamina- ion Of Mrs, Freiheit, MT. Greenstein , her of her oath to tell the ruth. She insisted she was telling he truth and she was not a$are hat the police were knocking at her d loor.
 The beer taken in the raid was | ound to have an alcoholic content