Evening star., 1951-11-10
Barrett Counsel
Renew Efforts
To Block Quiz
Confer on Suit to
Bon Use of Police
Funds for Fight


naire, they said today.
Their first two moves have
failed.
Austin F. Garfield and Charles
E. Ford. two of the attorneys,
Statements Of Commissioners and Bonett's
Attorney. Poee A-5
conferred today on one phase Of
the battle-Pvt. Ray r. Swank's
suit to prevent the police associa-
ton from spending money to
fight the questionnaire
But they also said they want
to find out if there are admin
istrative channels through which
to appeal. The courts implied
yesterday that Maj. Barrett had
not exhausted all "administra-
tive remedies"
The Swank suit was filed after
the Policemen's Association voted
to offer financial support to Maj.
Barrett's revolt against the
QUESTIONABLE.
A court test of the lengthy quiz
was dismissed yesterday. and a
subsequent plea to the Commits
sioners to drop their order direct
ing police to answer it also
failed.
At the same time, the Com
missioners indicated they planned
mo disciplinary action against
Maj. Barrett because there had as
lyet been no insubordination.
IDeadline for filing answers to the
QUESTIONABLE is Tuesday.
The attorneys for Maj. Barrett,
who brought the suit testing the
Commissioners order, were frank
ly puzzled by the courts ruling.
The ruling leaves police where
they were when the subcommittee
first issued its QUESTIONABLE,
which asks searching questions
about financial and family mat
tiers of individual police, going
back through 1945.
Writ Refused by Court.
| District Judge James R. Kirk
land refused Maj. Barrett's plea
for an injunction against the
Commissioners order. The Judge
also dissolved a temporary re-
lstraining order he had issued.
/ He questioned the relevancy Of
some of the questions. however.
!, and left the way open for pos
sible court action later, if the
policemen are disciplined for re-
Ifusing to answer. The judge re-
Ijected Maj. Barrett's petition on
the ground the injunction plea
was premature.
The crime subcommittee has
singled out about $50 of the Dis
trict's 1000 policemen to answer
the QUESTIONABLE as part of the
Senate's investigation into an
alleged gambling pay-off racket
here.
Maj. Barrett has challenged the
27-page QUESTIONABLE as an in
vasion of privacy. He said many
Iof the 1.750 questions pry into
family affairs.
| However, although most police
men refused to comment, there
were indications some of them are
filling out the QUESTIONABLE, and
the subcommittee may get some
answers despite the chiefs opposi-
ton to the document.
City Heads Stand Pat on Order.
Immediately following Judge
Kirkland's action, attorneys for
Maj. Barrett met to plan strategy
for their next move, and the Com
missioners met to decide what
would be done about the order.
The attorneys then met with
the Commissioners and asked
them to rescind their order that
the QUESTIONABLE be answered.
BY 2-l vote, the Commissioners
decided to uphold their order.
Engineer Commissioner Bernard
L. Robinson and Commissioner F.
Joseph Donohue voted to uphold
the order and Commissioner John
Russell Young voted to rescind it.
II feel" said Commissioner
Robinson. there is just one major
issue involved on the whole queS-
fTnpfiproJ ~, Do0o A2 ro1 EN