The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1929-02-04
Charge of First Degree
Murder Placed Against
Charles Zimmerman.
SEVEN MORE SOUGHT
Wait Further Action Today
Following Grand Jury,
Indictments.
BIZ Times Specta5

ANGOLA, Ind, Feb. 4
Charles Zimmerman, former
county sheriff, has opened a
fight to be released on bond
pending trial on a first degree
murder charge in connection
with the Staying of Thomas
Burke, bank bandit. Sheriff
Dorsey Folck took his pre-
decessor in office into custody
at s: 80 this morning.
The former sheriff, first of ten
persons indicted by grand jury
probing a county crime ring to be
taken into custody, asserts he can
account for every minute of his time
on the day of the Burke Staying.
A habeaS corpus proceeding has
been filed in his behalf by A. G..
Wood, Angola lawyer, and a hear
ing on it has been set for p. m.
today before Judge G. E. Carlin of
the Steuben-La Grange circuit
court.
First degree murder is not bail
able offense, and in the proceeding
it will be asserted that evidence
against Zimmerman is not strong
enough to warrant a charge of that
degree.
Bootlegging Charged
George Potter, Angola, was the
second person arrested in connec-
ton with the crime quiz. He is
charged with bootlegging Seven
other persons remain to be ar
rested.
Ed Keister, known as a bootlegger,
was the third man arrested, the
charge against him being prohibi-
ton law violation.
Reluctance on the part of Sheriff
F'olck and his deputies to make ar
rests on the indictments is seen in
their actions toward KeiSter and
also a refusal to accept aid of state
police.
When a deputy of Folck went to
the Keister home, he was told by
the accused mar: ST have sore
foot" The deputy came back to
Angola without the prisoner, and
later today plans to return with
papers so that Keister can arrange
bond without appearing in court
here.
Refuses State Aid
Two state policemen, who asked
that their names not be made
public, offered their assistance to
F'olck today and was told that it
was not wanted. George McHie, as
sistant state police chief, and mem
bers of his force, were active dur
ing the grand jury session. At one
time some residents here asked Sec
rotary of State Otto G. FifleId to
remove Nellie from the case, but
he refused to do so.
Sc--~-, icons OF the ten indicted
remain to be served with warrants.
Two of them are known to be
Brown McCool and Robert David
son, both long connected with gam
bling activities in this part of Indi-
ana. It Is not known upon what
indictments against them are based.
The jury ended its work Friday
night, but no further action was
taken until today, pending COM
pletion of warrants for those &C
cused.
The body of Burke, one Of
bandit gang which robbed the First
National bank here in May, 1923,
was found in August of that year
in the ruins of burned barn near
Fremont At the time Zimmerman
then sheriff, was in Colon, Mich,
and has admitted he was in the
company of Miss Nellie Coleman, a
deputy in his Office.
Evidence in Bloody Auto
In the garage at the sheriff's
residence here, an automobile with
blood stains on one of the seats was
found on the same day that the
body of Burke was recovered from
the smoking ruins. In the car was
a revolver belonging to Zimmerman.
Throughout the crime ring probe,
asked tn; he be per-
mitted to appear as a grand Jury
witness, but was not called, al
though his deputy, Russell Eckert,
was witness for several hours and
in addition. was closely questioned by
state police aiding in the investiga-
ton.