Evening star., 1948-11-01
Automatic Rifle
Used byBandit
In Battle-Ground
Gun and Coot Hidden
NeorScen of HoIdup
In Which Two Died

Near Scene OF Holdup
In Which Two Died
The automatic rife used by a
robber in a gun battle in which two
men were killed and three BOYS
wounded Saturday night and the
killers brown coat have been found,
police disclosed today.
The rifle and coat were found
hidden in lumber yard in. South
west Washington not far from the
scene of the shooting. The rife is
a 35-caliber clip-loading Winchester
With the rife, the robber killed
James E. Washington, So, colored
manager of the Rosalia Theater,
218 F street S.W., and fought his
way out of a police Gordon which
blocked both ends of the street in
which the Staying occurred.
50 Shots Exchanged.
More than so shots were ex-
changed as three policemen and the
killer blazed away at each other.
During the exchange Herbert Smith,
IS, Of 1924 Seventh street NV, a
bystander, also was killed, and Carl
Shedrick, 10, of 829 Delaware ave-
nue. S.W., Richard Lee Jefferson, 13,
Of $40 O'Neil court S.W., and DON
aid johnson, 16, of 1916 Fourth
street S.W., were wounded. All the
shooting victims are colored.
Ballistics experts of the Federal
Bureau of Investigation are assist
ing Metropolitan police in deter
mining whether the bullet which
killed Smith came from the. rife or
from the revolver of one of the
policemen.
Homicide squad detectives are
tracing ownership of the gun and
coat, and appear. hopeful that a
break" in the case is not far away.
Several colored men are being
held for questioning at the fourth
and fifth precincts, but police indi-
Gated none of them are believed
to be directly implicated in the
killing.
Bag With Receipts vanishes.
Washington was killed as he
walked to his automobile parked
near the theater carrying a bag
containing about $400.
Witnesses said the killer sepa-
rated from two other men when he
approached Washington. Detec-
tives said they are not sure whether
the two men were the killers ac-
completes or were bystanders.
The bag containing receipts from
the theater vanished after WASH
ington fell. Police have been unable
to establish whether 1t was picked
up by the killer or was stolen by
some one In the crowd that gathered.
Policeman Thomas Allen, who
exchanged shots with the killer
from a distance Of 20 feet, said he
did not see the bag and that the
man had both hands occupied with
the rife. Pvt. Allen thought one of
his shots might have hit the bandit
but said there were no bullet holes
in the coat which the man aban-
doned.
Thought Shots Firecrackers.
Police said the bandit was a
colored man about feet inches
tall. They said he was wearing a
brown jacket like the one found
Policemen j. E. Smith and w.
Toler were at a call box at Third
and r streets when Washington
was shot a half block away. AS they
ran toward the scene the killer
opened fire. Both officers took cover
and emptied their guns at the man.
While this exchange was under
way Policemen H. r. Kershner and
Allen reached the intersection of
Second and r streets S.W. in their
scout car, and 1t appeared the killer
was trapped. However, policemen
thought the reports they had heard
were Halloween firecrackers.
Pvt. Allen left the scout car at
the corner, and as he walked toward
the theater met the killer. He or
dered the man to drop his gun and
was met by burst of gunfire. AS
Pvt. Allen dropped behind a parked
car to return the fire the killer fed
past him.
Fog Aided Escape.
Pvt KerShner, still unaware that
any one had been killed, pursued
the fugitive in the scout car to an
alley on Second street between F
and 4 streets where the front tire
OF the car blew out.
Shortly after the shooting a
dense fog rolled in over the neigh
borhood. Police believe the killer
hid in the lumber yard until the
mist was thick enough to hide his
movements.
Young Jefferson and johnson
were only grazed by the bullets and
returned to their homes after hos
pital treatment. The Shedrick bow
Is In Gallinger Hospital with a frac-
fllred ri0ht lao