The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1935-07-01
HOODLUM ADDS
TOMYSTERY Of
SHOOTING
William SchWeitzer Says He
Shot Hughes Nephew, Then
Claims It Was Suicide
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excited and shot him twice
more" Schweitzer said.
3. II heard a shot in the
rear seat Of the car. I reached
for Dickinson when he was
Slumping to the floor. Then
the gun went off again."
Stories given by the three
women, all entertainers in cheap
beer gardens, were virtually the
same with Detective Chief Fred
Grahm stating he believed they
had been carefully rehearsed in
advance.
They said they had started on
an automobile ride with Schweit-
ger and Dickinson after a drink
ing party in Schweitzer'S hotel
room. After reaching an isolated
spot near Rouge Park here, the
car was stopped while the girls
got out.
They heard the shots but did
not see Dickinson die, they
claimed. After the shooting. the
body of Dickinson was left at the
roadside and Schweitzer and the
girls, after obtaining clothing,
fled to Chicago, hid there in a
North Side apartment for a day
and then fled to Fort Wayne
separately after Chicago papers
played the murder story heavily.
Machine in Chicago
In all of his declarations,
Schweitzer claimed that Dickin-
son was the owner of the death
weapon. The gun has not been
found. Schweitzer told police that
he had left the automobile in a
South side garage in Chicago.
Detective Frahm believed that the
car might contain the death
weapon or money taken from
Dickinson's body. Chicago police
are searching for the car. Later,
the dapper suspect denied he had
left the machine there.
Dickinson'S widow and son, the
latter Howard, jr., denied in dis
patches to Detroit police that
Dickinson had a gun. The widow
said:
HE neither owned nor car
ried one"
According 70 one version re-
counted by Schweitzer, Dickinson
became alarmed when the car
stopped, demanding whats this
all about" SchweitZer claimed
the lawyer then drew a gun and
shot himself.
McCrea'S opinion was corrobo-
rated by DR.. R. ebert Kallman,
county medical examiner, who
performed the post-mortem on
the slain mans body. DR.. Kali
man said:
"Suicide is eliminated as a
theory by the fact that either
one Of the two shots would
have been fatal. In other words,
Dickinson would not have been
alive to fire the second shot.
The location of the wounds
lone in the body and one in
the head) also discounts q
suicide theory.
81 have an idea that Dickin-
son was shot as he sat quietly
with no idea as to what was
coming. If there had been q
tuSsle, his body would have
been marked with scratches.
There were no marks.
TELLS THIRD STORY
"AIsO, the bullet penetrating
his left side went through his
right arm. This could not have
happened In a struggle. His
arm was stationary at his side"
In another version, the hoodlum
said a quarrel climaxed a dice
game and Dickinson was shot IN
a scuffle. In q third story, SchWelt-
ger charged that Dickinson shot
himself and that he then shot the
attorney twice again. i
Schweitzer made no mention OF
robbery during any of his recitalS.
Detective Chief Frahm said ne
did not believe that the lawyer
had shot himself.
All of the four prisoners said
that Dickinson had become &C
ouainted with them as Schweit-
ger and the two sisters were dining
at a downtown hotel Tuesday eve
ming. He had come over to their
table and offered to buy them a
drink. Later the two girls went
to Dickinson's room, where more
drinking occurred and the ar
rangements made for the fatal