The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1927-03-01

Monday morning and show him
twenty-five cases where there was
crooked jury work. Then the judge
said he would not dismiss the jury
commissioners"
Monday morning. Davis said,
Dearth called him to the bench and
said:
- dare you to say to me now
what you said in your office Satur-
day night
Davis said he didn't care to so to
Jail. No he did not take the dare.
The name OF Jake Cavanaugh,
the supposedly Democratic jury
commissioner, was brought into the
hearing. A committeeman asked if
the story that not even Cavanaugh
was qualified to serve as jury COM
missioner were true.
Davis replied that he had heard
the story that Judge Dearth, upon
hearing that Cavanaugh was not a
| freebooter. had caused a cheap piece
I of property in a poor section of the
city to be transferred to Cavanaugh,
but that he never had run the rec
ord and could not answer the ques-
ton.
Chairman Harris asked him to in
vestigate this and also mail to the
committee the records of jurors who
served without owning property. Da-
Wis said he would.
The Barlow Case
Davis cited the Pete Barlow case.
Barlow was held responsible by the
coroner for the death of s. man
/ found at the foot of the stairway of
his place.
THE press had been openly saying
that the police department was pro-
tecting Barlow" said Davis. 1t was
common gossip that the police de-
partment was protecting. a lot of
places.
"When the grand jury was gath
cred together TO consider this Bar
low case we found the wife of the
night sergeant of police, Mrs.
Henry Peterman on that grand
jury.
1 am also informed that there
was a Mrs. Arthur Jones on that
grand jury and that she was the
wife of the chief of police. That is
the chief of Tolice's name. never
checked up OIL the exact relations of
this woman.
1.-THE grand jury returned no in
dictment against Barlow"
Davis said that once in despera-
ton he told Dearth that the juries
looked ''to me like they were drawn
from a poll book more than from
the tax duplicate"
Davis said that he found one case
so rotten that his conscience would
not let him permit it to slide by.
This was the case in which a jury
in Dearth's court convicted Dale OF
criminal libel upon one Rayond War
ner. Davis said he found three per
sons on the jury who were avowed
enemies of Dale. This was during
Davis as prosecutor.
This One Too Raw
The young prosecutor said he felt
it his duty to confess error on these
jurors and filed such a pleading with
the Supreme Court, which is con
sidering Dale's appeal.
Davis said that when the grand
father of Johnny Haines approached
him about filing an affidavit against
the policeman who slapped the boy
that Dearth, standing nearby ad
vised him:
Il wouldn't file anything for this
man if 1 were you"
Davis filed the affidavit neyerthe
less.
Bar Head Testifies
Francis A. Shaw, president Of the
Muncie Bar Association, who was
present when Judge Dearth seized
the papers and threatened the news
boys, read the transcript of what
happened, which he had taken down
in shorthand. This was the
document printed in The Indianapo-
lis Times at the time Dearth's i'm
parchment was first demanded last
week.
Shaw described the jury system
in Dearth's court, calling upon some
Of his own experiences. He declared
that jury commissioners have beer
known to draw their own wives il
some instances.
He declared that last December
be filed civil suits in Superior Court
to prevent the city treasurer from
paying some high fees to certain
city officials which were regarded as
exhorbitant. He said that he did not
obtain a temporary restraining
order, because the treasurer agreed
not to pay out the moneys before
the suits were decided.
Order Is Rushed
In the face of this the defendants
; went into Dearth's Circuit Cour
early one morning. Shaw said. OBJ
, tanned an order to the treasurer Il
pay them the money, and collecte'
it before he even got to the court
house that day.
II was out doing some Christina