Evening star., 1946-03-30
Gill 10 End Testimony
With Reply 10 Charges
I0f Unjust Reprimands

Howard B. Gill's answer to charges
he unjustly reprimanded officers at
the District Jail was expected to
conclude today the testimony of the
suspended penal superintendent in
his fight for reinstatement before q
board of inquiry.
Twelve out of 16 charges originally
filed against Mr. Gill by the Board
of Public Welfare remain against
him. In four days on the witness
stand Mr.. Gill has countered eight
of them. The inquiry board threw
out one of the charges yesterday,
while counsel for the Welfare Board
has dropped three of them.
The four left all concern repri-
mands of the custodial force. De-
Tense Attorney John j. Wilson con-
tends the Welfare Board has offered
no testimony to support two charges
that Mr.. Gill reprimanded officers
for enforcing "a rules of the Jail
promulgated by the Welfare Board
and tf2) orders issued by the penal
superintendent or by the resident
superintendent.
Denies "Stay Away" Order,
Mr.. Gill testified yesterday hs
never received either an oral or a
written order from the Institutions
Committee of the Welfare Board to
stay away from meetings of COM
mittee he had appointed to inyesti-
gate the escape of five prisoners
from the Jail November "a. He said
he told the Institutions Committee
on November 26 that he was not
attending and that it acquiesced.
They did not direct or instruct
me to stay away. We did not spend
two minutes on it, he commented.
The subject was not even men,
toned by Welfare Board members
at meetings on November % and
November 80, he added The witness
said he decided November % to at
tend the meetings Of the Investigat-
ing Committee because the Welfare
Board wanted a full report on the
jailbreak and because of the pres
ence of police.
CdyS L UIitlCS 1HfUittus
Politics were involved" he as
serted Although I had taken little
interest in politics, thought that to
protect the Welfare Board I should
be present. I told members of the
Investigating Committee I did not
think we should wash our dirty linen
before representative of the police
unless responsible prison official
was present, Mr.. Gill said.
| The District Commissioners had at
that time given their support to
! bill to reorganize welfare adminis-
tration, taking it from the independ-
ent welfare board and placing it in a
department responsible to the Com
missioners. Chairman Mcmillan Of
the House District Committee an
nounced this week that hearings on
the bill will begin after the Gill case
is concluded
AS to a charge he filed to submit
a written report on the jailbreaks by
November 80. Mr., Gill fatty denied
that he received any such instruc-
uions. He also denied the testimony
Of welfare board members that he
gave them any reason to feel that
they were not getting all available
information on the cause of the
jailbreak
Had Notes for Report.
81 reported to the Institutions S
Committee November 26 on what we
had found out to date. 1 told the
members of great many things
that did not appeaer in the newspa-
pers," he remarked.
Mr.. Gill said he gave the Insti-
Itutions Committee another verbal
report November % and offered to
tell the welfare board all he knew
on November 80, although he had no
written report because the investi-
eating committee had not completed
its inquiry.
They asked me why I didn't have
d written report, and 1 told them.
didn't take anything they said as
censure," Mr.. Gill commented. It
had notes prepared to give a verbal
report. They didn't want it. They
said they had other business of i'm
DOrt9nce aOG eyciead mo