Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-05-27
Detectives Break Two Doors
to Enter Establishment on
Thirteenth Street.
OFFICIALS STUDY LAW
ON WARRANTLESS DRIVE
Rover Declines to Comment as
Capt. Burke Reports About
100 Places in Precinct.

come OF a conference in the district
attorneys ONCE to determine whether
five gambling and liquor resorts raided
without warrants yesterday would be
prosecuted, they staged spectacular
impromptu raid early this afternoon at
525 Thirteenth street
In making the raid, police, in radio
patrol cars and on motor cycles with
sirens shriekng, swept through the
downtown section of the city, hating
all traffic. The radio call reporting the
shooting drew half dozen radio pa
troll cars from different sections of the
city
The raid followed q mysterious and
anonymous report to police headouar-
tiers that man had been shot at the
address.
Police denied they were using a new
method of staging "warrantless raids"
on downtown gambling and liquor re-
sorts Lieut.. G. j. p. Weber of the De-
tective Bureau said the raid had not
been prearranged
Find Door Locked.
4AAaS SOAt Va tAAulSs ne SalQ, n8D-
pens frequently. We get flash of some
law violation, only to find a gambling
or liquor resort running. Then we make
the raid"
The raid was made by a SQUAD of de-
tectives from headquarters and by police.
men from the first precinct, respond
ing to a telephone message that "a
man has been shot"
At the Thirteenth street address the
policemen found q door at the foot of
the stairway leading to the second floor
was locked
Smashing glass panel in the door,
the raiders swarmed up the steps only
70 md another locked door at the top.
This, too, they battered open. but the
alleged gambling place, which occupied
the entire floor, was deserted except for
one man.
He identified himself as Richard
Locksman, 81, Of 1914 r street north
east. Police said he would be charged
with setting up and operating a book
making establishment
Place Reported Filled.
Employees of business establishments
in the neighborhood said the place was
damned with customers" few
minutes before police arrived. They ex-
pressed surprise when told only one
arrest had been made.
The man arrested, they said, was not
the proprietor of the resort, however.
The owner, they added, was standing
In front OF the establishment when the
hrst group of policemen arrived.
Obviously alarmed, he ran into q
nearby store and darted into a tele-
phone booth. When he came out few
minutes later, he mingled with the
throng and disappeared.
In a small office in the front part of
the building the raiders found two
paying tellers' windows" an adding
machine, two telephones, a radio over
which, they said, racing results were
received; a quantity of scratch pads,
betting sheets and other alleged book
making paraphernalia. The parapher-
MALTA was seized
The floor, which was divided into sew.
eral rooms, also contained a pool table
and alleged betting tables" The walls
were decorated with photographs of
race horses and scenes at various tracks.
Oft1cials of the Police department adj
mitted some doubt as 10 whether the
five warrantless aids made yesterday
would take"
If it develops that such raids are
legal, however, there are about a hun
dred" other drinking and gaHsLling re-
be raided Immediately, according to
Capt. Frank S. w. Burke, precinct
commander.
In the past. Capt Burke pointed cut,
United States Attorney Leo A. Rover
always has insisted that police raid
drinking and gambling places only
when they have warrants.
Rover Delays Action.
~
the legality of the raids, but directed
his assistants at Police Court to make
no move toward taking the cases into
court until they have conferred with
hial. He ordered thorough investiga-
ton OF the charges against the nine
men held.
If 1t develops that the raids were
legal, Capt. Burke declared, he will
open drive in his precinct.
Only a few weeks ago, he added,
Lieut.. Frank Varney of his precinct
made raid under much the same
circumstances as yesterdays. The case
not only was thrown out" Capt. Burke
added, but Lieut.. Varney was given
AN official reprimand" by Rover.
Commenting on the raids, in which
80 men were arrested, Inspector Will
liam S. Shelby, chief of detectives.
pointed out they were made after four
headquarters detectives, who gained en-
trance to the places by explaining they
were seeking suspects in the recent
liquor robbery at the legation of FL
Salvador, summoned the vice squad.
The detectives = Sergts. Lawrence
ODea. Arthur, FINELY. o. W. Mans
field and Howard Ogle-notified the
squad, Inspector Shelby continued, be-
cause they saw evidence that the law
was being violated
This procedure, the inspector said. is
not unusual. On the contrary, he said,
members of the Police Department are
required to call the vice squad when
ever they stumble upon violations of the
liquor or gambling laws.
While warrantless raids have been
declared Illegal in the past, the in
spector went on. yesterdays raids were
"a little different" because of the cir
cumstanceS under which they were
made.
Obtaining SUFFICIENT evidence to con-
Wet in the average raid, for which
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