Evening star., 1950-12-22
D. {. Unit Plans
New Push for
Wire-Tap Bill
Baked by Objection,
Committee Hopes to
Meet Next Friday
By Robert K. Walsh

Meet Next Friday
By Robert K. Welsh
Cut off IN its efforts to act on
a wire-tap2ing law, the Senate
District Committee today put in
q call for another meeting next
Friday in The hope of getting its
message to the Senate floor.
An unexpected and almost I'M
precedented objection on the Sen
ate floor to a request for permis-
sion to meet late yesterday pre-
the full committee from
Il strict control bill. It
also blocked committee action on
q recommendation that a Metro
politan Police lieutenant be
brought before police trial board.
A subcommittee last Wednes-
day approved the proposed meas
ure banning possession and use Of
wire-tapping equipment in the
District except by authorized Dis
trict law-enforcement officers with
a court order or warrant in cases
crimes involving human
lives. The bill does not apply
to the FBI or intelligence services
of the Defense Department.
The subcommittee's report,
given out after the full commit
tees futile attempt to meet,
urged that there should be no
delay" in citing Police 1t. Joseph
w. Shimon before a trial board
because of his admitted wire-tap-
ping activities in 1947 and 1948.
1t. Shimon formerly was assigned
to the Office of United States At
torney George Morris Fay.
Meeting Set Tentatively.
The full committee had been
in session about a half hour when
notified 1t did not have permission
to meet while the Senate was in
session. Members learned that
Majority Leader Lucas requested
permission but that Republican
Leader Wherry and Senator
Schoeppel, Republican. of Kansas
objected.
The meeting broke up and Com
mittee Chairman Nicely and Sub
committee Chairman Pepper
voiced doubt that the group could
be brought together again befoR
the present session ends. At
tempts to arrange a meeting for
today fell through but a tenta-
tive arrangement was made to
meet next Friday.
The objection raised on the
Senate floor was the first of its
kind. so far as members of the
committee recalled. They de-
clared they were amazed" by the
refusal. Senator Wherry ex-
planned later that several Sen
ators asked him to object to the
at this time. He added
that he did not recall who asked
him.
The mixture Of confusion and
brought varying ac-
counts of what happened during
the committee session and behind
the scenes Of the Senate session
Thought Permission Granted.
Senator Hendrickson. Republi-
can, of New Jersey, a committee
member, said he had assumed that
permission had been obtained
earlier in the day. Through a mis-
understanding with a committee
staff member, this apparently was
not done, he said. Senators Pep
per and Nicely also said they
thought permission had beer
granted.
Others disclosed that Senator
Mccarthy, Republican, Of Wiscon-
sin, also a committee member
raised the question of permission
in the closed meeting of commit
tee. Mr.. Mccarthy, they said
earlier had protested that the leg
islation aimed at controlling wire.
tapping in the District might him
der the FBI.
Several members kept coming
in and out of the meeting" Sena-
tor Pepper said later, land I am
in no position to say whether any
one on the committee. went out tt
suggest to Senator Wherry that
the committee ought not to be
given permission to meet"
Just as the committee was
breaking up, a clerk walked ir
with a letter from Senator Brew.
ster, Republican, of Maine, who
last week had been invited to tes-
tify. The Maine Senator last
summer told reporters he author.
lied payments between $100 and
$3.50 in 1947 to 1t. Shimon fol-
tracing a man he believed was
shadowing the Senator at the time
of the old Senate War Investigat-
ing Committees hearings on wal
contracts of Howard Hughes, plane
manufacturer.
Unable to Study Transcript.
Senator BreWster's letter to the
committee said that because OF
pressure of other Senate duties he
had been unable to study the 300
pages of transcript of hearings
held by the subcommittee last
summer.
"A hasty examination" he wrote,
"does not indicate anything that
would suggest comment on my
part. I should feel that the evil
dence of Abner Lappin (the man
said to have shadowed Senator
Brewster) would be sufficiently
discredited by his police record, if
the committee cared to incorpo-
rate it in the record"
The Senator added that he
would ''be at the service of the
committee at any mutually con-
venient time" if it believed he
could be Of assistance in COM
mittee consideration of legisla-