Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-04-22
PROSECUTOR ASKS
0UST|NC OF JUDGES
Two for Disbarment and
Three for Investigation Urged
in Youngstown Clash.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio, April "a
Prosecutor Ray l.. Thomas has struck
back at Mahoning County Common
pleas court judges who have demanded
that he withdraw from an investigation
OF public utility deals here.
Thomas, in petitions filed late yeSter-
day, asked disbarment of Judges David
G. Jenkins and J. H. G. Lyon and with
them named three ether judges in affi-
GavitS OF prejudice.
Judge Jenkins became nationally
known as the jurist whose decision re-
Gently enjoined the proposed billion dol
lar merger of the Bethlehem Steel Cor
pcration and the Youngstown Sheet and
Tube Co.
Judges Accuse Thomas.
The utilities investigator was started
last March when Harry Engle was GUST
ed as traction commissioner. The five
Mahoning common pleas judges have
charged that Thomas himself is in
volved in utility deals and have asked
that he be removed from the investiga-
ton.
Thomas also demanded the disbar-
ment of Attorney Andrew M. Hender-
son, one of the three legal advisors to
the judges in their investigation.
jenkins was charged with receiving
funds for vacation trip and medical
expenses from utilities, Lyon with using
his Office as an excuse to avoid payment
of $500 light bill, and Henderson with
assuming financial obligations of Lyons,
after being appointed as attorney for
receiver.
Threat Of Action.
AS soon as the judges learned Of
mental journal charging an unnamed
attorney for the prosecutor with threat
ening action unless a compromise was
reached on the utilities probe. They
also asserted that the hearing on their
demands that Thomas withdraw would
be held as planned April 20, before two
outside judges.
The judges recently appointed three
special prosecutors to place the investi-
CATION before the grand jury, but
Thomas defeated this move in an ap-
peal to the State Supreme Court.
An additional charge against Jen-
kins is that in 1928 he helped draw an
action against the county commission
ers in the purchase of land on Front
street and said he would overrule a
demurrer If presented. The next day
jenkins did overTule a demurrer,
Thomas petition says.
Beginning Of Controversy.
Thomas petition asserted he was in
vestigating the charges against the
judges when they began the effort to
disqualify him
The utilities investigation here began
when A. c. Blinn, vice president and
general manager Of the Ohio Edison
Co. wrote city council that Engle had
demanded $4,000, which, he said,
Engle claimed, was due him for "serv-
ices rendered" Engle had been active
in a campaign to reduce power rates
here.
At the same time Prosecutor Thomas
wrote council that Engle was using
his Office in gigantic blackma1
scheme" and called on Engle, If he de-
MED the charge, to waive immunity and
appear before the grand jury.
Engle at first said merely that he
regarded the Blinn charge as CLOSED
incident" Later he asked Judge Jen-
kins for special new grand jury under
a special prosecutor to inquire into all
officials here. The traction commits
sioner refused to waive immunity before
any grand jury of which Thomas was
in charge. The common pleas judges
sought repeatedly to have a special
State investigation, but were refused
by Gov White. Finally they called a
new grand jury and appointed the
three special prosecutors. Thomas block
ed this move by obtaining an injunction
in the Ohio Supreme Court, which held
that the prosecutor should be given a
hearing before he could be disqualified.