The Waterbury Democrat., 1944-10-27

pected to be taken at a meeting Scheduled for 3 o'clock Tuesday af- ternoon in New Haven. Finding Not Discussed : Commissioner Charles Derry of Seymour said today that the finding has not been discussed by the coins inisslonerB aS yet and any action to be taken aB Q result Of the probe will be determined ct the regular meeting. The commissioners ordi- nariiy meet each Tuesday and Thursday.
 Commissioner Derry, when ques' toned about possible reorganization of personnel at the jail, said that phase of the matter would niso have to be determined by the comn1is- sionerg as . group. He said he had not been informed whether or not the state Judiciary or any other county official would Dc represented ct the meeting.
 Frederick Holbrook of Madison is chairman of the commissioners, The third member is Edward Raf. faele of West Haven. John Ross of New Haven serves as secretary to the commissioners.
 Revelation Of the contents of the finding were made yesterday after noon oil an order from Judge Prank P. McEvoy who earlier in the day ordered the finding submitted to the commissioners. The report was sealed when it was presented last Friday to the court clerk, William A. Bree, pending orders from the court The entire probe had been clothed with secrecy.
 Although several Waterbury resl- dents testified at the grand Jury hearing, their names were not brought out in the referees find- ing, and no indication Is given which witnesses gave the particular testimony referred to.
 Enclosures were made in the re- port that favored prisoners, mostly gamblers were given special treat- fient for which the guards were weii-pald. Several Waterburians, who served sentences there, were among those subpeoned to testify uuEtnB bHe pTope,
 Arrest Recommended
 TaefeFee Poster recommended the arrest of Ferretti, declaring he had stolen, and later replaced, 40i70 Of the jail funds which he lost on horse FaceB and found that high sheriff J. Edward SlaVin, although unaware of the embezzlement until after it had occurred, failed to make the full facts known to Investigators.
 HiaVin is founder Of the first of- fender" club, dramatIzed by radio and movies, to curb juvenile delln- quency.
 Poster found that the jail in- firmary, called the "biue room, was made available to gamblers confin. cd in the institution, and that they played for high stakes, with ap. pFoVai of guards who received Q per- centage Of the winnings. Some of the guards, said Foster, had priB- oneFs acting as their agents to col. feet the "cutS."
 Further, the referee charged, both guards and prisoners sold liquor "at very high prices" to inmates, and some Of the guards consumed I. quor while on duty, even to the point of intoxication."
 Prisoners with special privileges were allowed to leave the jail to "go to Q nearby smoke shop and bet on horses" he said.
 One of the guards was reported to have used jail supplies, includ- ing blankets and sheets ct his own private cottage.
 Common Practice"
 Referee Poster said it was "cofi. mon practice for prisoners who were employed in the kitchen to prepare or have prepared in the Kitchen, sandwiches of good meat and to go about the cells and sell them for i've cents So also coffee and milk would be taken from the kite chen, prepared i1 the cell block with 0 blow torch and sold to pris- oTierB at ten cents 0 cup. The use of mattresses and pillows was sold by favored prisoners to those not favored Occupants Of the blue sUosn' paid other prisoners sub- MAntiai sums for putting h order sAeiE beds"
 Poster also said that blow torches were used to clean vermin infested cells, and that truStles often would refuse to do this work unless paid by the inmates.
 Elavln and his chief deputy, Nicholar W. Mona, were declared to "iack care and efficiency" and Poster said that while witnesses said both ofncilas were aware of con- dltlons, they denied knowledge of the situation and disputed the testi- Enony of inmate witnesses.
 The investigation resulted from the escape of five prisoners last June and an assertion by one of them that liquor was procurable at she Jail and often was brought in " prisoners assigned to outside work.