Evening star., 1950-02-16
Crime Probe
CONTINUED From First Page.)

bondsmen get the most business
from the gambling fraternity.
Virtually all the men who post
bonds for court appearances
were handed subpoenas late yes
terday to appear at 1:30 pm. to-
day before the subcommittee.
Although congressional COM
mittees usually have their own in
vestigators or deputy marshals
serve subpoenas. the bondsmen
were handed their subpoenas by
policemen. One bondsman said
he got his subpoena from Lit.
Scott" Another said a LIT. Fuss
handed him his paper.
The bondsmen professed total
bafflement as to the cause Of
their sudden call to Capitol Hill. ,
Some sources familiar with the
current gossip around Judiciary
Square recalled that some bonds
men have complained they don't
get as much business as do others.
They have implied that favor
itiSm" accounts for their failure
to get more business. They have
sometimes strongly, that
certain police and certain attor-
neys guide defendants to their
friends among the bondsmen.
Specific Charges Lacking.
But when it gets down to max
ing specific charges or filing for
NAL complaints. the complaining
bondSmen have failed to follow
through. One such complainant,
it was learned, got as far as say
ing he had noticed the names of
all but one bondsman torn out of
a telephone book at precinct sta
ton. No formal complaint was
filed in that case either.
In addition to expressing total
surprise at being called before
the subcommittee, the bondsmen
said they couldn't understand
why the investigators wanted all
their books, other records and
cancelled checks.
They pointed out that each
bondsman has his own book at
Municipal Court with a record of
all the bonds he posts. The Grim
inal clerks Office in District Court
also maintains a record of the
bondsman in each case.
Bondsman Explains Work.
Some bondsmen said they would
need bushel baskets to transport
all the records of their activities
to the hearing.
AS explained by one bondsman,
here's how the business operates
from the time man is arrested: /:
The bondsman or his agent is
called to the precinct to talk to
the prisoner. He gets an author
ization slip from the prisoner CIV
ing him the authority to act as
the prisoners bondsman.
The bondsman hands this slip
to the precinct station clerk who
gives him the information in the
case. Armed with this, the bonds
man goes to the lieutenant in the
Detective Bureau at police head
quarters. There he signs the bond
and gets a release slip which he
takes back to the precinct to get
his client out of jail.
Court Must Be Satisfied.
The next day, bondsman and
client go to the bond clerks Of
flee in Municipal Court, where
the client signs the same bond
as the bondsman had signed pre-
viously at headquarters. The
bond clerk then makes an entry
in the bondsman's book kept in
the clerks office.
Where a defendant goes before
the United States commissioner
and is held for the grand jury,
the bondsman writes the bond
in the criminal clerks Office at
District Court.
In order to serve as bondsmen,
it was explained, each bondsman
has to satisfy the court that he
has the money to pay in case the
defendant forfeits his bond by
disappearing. The bondsman's S
assets must be unencumbered
property rather than cash.