Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1939-06-29
John E. OxIey Ousted
As Police Commissioner
DepOsed Member Threatens Legal Action Claims
Board Acted Without Power - President Hamp-
ton Answers Charge

Custer of John E. Oxley, county
commissioner for Rockville district
and one of the former leaders of the
anti-organization Democratic forces
as police commissioners may reach
the court. It is reported that Oxley is
contemplating legal action.
! Commissioner Oxley was removed
from the post by the commissioners
Tuesday. In losing the post he loses
an additional salary of $1,000 per
year and is reduced to the status of
an ordinary commissioner without adj
ditional emolument beyond the regu-
lar salary of $1,000 per year.
| Removal of Oxley from the post
brought into the open fight that has
been smouldering in the commission
er's office since shortly after the Ne
vember election. Oxley is reported to
have differed with the other three
Democratic members of the board, all
organization Democrats, on number
of occasions since the harmony pact
of last year which brought the war
ring Democratic factions together
FOR the first time in years.
Oxley charged his Democratic col
leagues with political motives in re-
moving him from the Office, and said
he might contest the action in court.
In reply President T. Earle Hampton,
declared Oxley is out of sympathy
with the boards efforts to improve
the police force and as result the
majority members felt his removal as
police commissioner advisable.
II protest the recall of my appoint
iment as police commissioner, Mr..
Oxley declared in Rockville, "and in
order to help keep the police depart
ment out of politics may decide to
contest the action in court.
'The appointment, made last De-
cember when the present board was
organized, was for four years and I
believe the action of the board prob
ably was illegal. The position Of police
commissioner is absolutely necessary
and one will have to be appointed
when the first charge is brought
against any member of the police
force.
"The action of the board, in my
opinion, is subterfuge to get some
one else on the trial board who is a
member of the new one-man, Brooke
Lee, machine"
| Mr.. Oxley further pointed out that
the bill creating the new county police
civil service system provides for a
police trial board consisting of three
members who shall be the police COM
missioner, the police civil service
commissioner, and another member to
he named by the board Of county COM
missioners. For that reason, he said,
it would be impossible to allow the
position to continue vacant.
Answering Mr.. Oxley's charges
Mr.. Hampton said:
| We have made every effort to be
conIderate of Commissioner Oxley
and stated as our reasons for voting
to vacate the position that he held as
police commissioner the fact that the
majority members of the Board of
County Commissioners feel that the
Operation of the county police force
is of such Importance to all the people
Of Montgomery County as to both
justify and require for the present
time the direct supervision of the en-
larged force, containing at it does Is
new men, by all the members of
the Board of County Commissioners.
Commissioner Oxley has seen fit to
make totally untrue charge that our
action was based upon desire on the
part of the majority members to be
able to take more direct political con-
troll of the police trial board. One ans
wer to this charge is that there are
now no charges pending against men,
bers of the county police force and
until such cases develop there is no
foundation of any kind for the charge.
The majority members of the board
further resent Mr.. Oxley's charge Of
political motives on every ground and
particularly on the ground that no
member of the board has been more
politically and more fractional than
Mr.. oxley has attempted to be since
his election.
Further reason for removing Mr..
Oxley as police commissioner was his
lack Of sympathy with the present