Evening star., 1952-01-06
Family Story Emphasizes Tragedy Behind Dope Raids
By George Kennedy
1t could happen to anyone.
xliA IL

IL old happen to Mrs. Jennie
Murdza.
At $3.50 am. yesterday report
er teiephoned her at her home in
nearby District Heights, Md, that
her 19-year-old son, Richard, was
one Of those arrested in the mar
cotic roundup.
The Murdza home at 2714
Ramblewood drive is an attractive
Cape Cod cottage with a brick
front. Colonial furniture can be
seen through the crossed tie-back
curtains.
Outside a little boy, running up
the walk from the street. said
I'm Larry Murdza."
MRS. Murdza had been out look
ing for Larry, her younger son.
She was an attractive young
mother wearing gray flannel
coat with gray Persian lamb coll
lar and a feathered pillbox hat
over her short curls. Now she
was ready to go to the arraign-
ment.
On the way in she tried to con-
vey what a bolt from the blue
it had been. Richard had never
been arrested. He hadn't been
out at night since New Years eve.
That is until Friday night, the
night he didn't come home.s
Left Light Burning.
She had left. the light burning
for him all night, wondering why
he had not called. If you miss
the last bus for District Heights,
you have to take a cab and per-
haps he didn't have the money.
He had stayed before with his
friend Joe Ivison.
What was he charged with?
Selling narcotics! He couldn't be.
He was working as a machine
tender on a lathe at the Erco-
Engineering Research Corp. plant
lat Riverdale, where the Ercoupe
airplanes are made. He got $1.2O
an hour which gave him about
$40-a-week take home pay. 50 He
had no extra money. He was
saving to buy a car but he had
only saved small amount.
He had come home from work
the day before, she said, given
her $40 out of his $37 pay en-
velope. He bought a shirt and
some ties, then put aside So so
he would be sure of his carfare
Through the coming week, and
went out.
For eight years they had lived
in the government housing project
at the Bellevue Naval Research
Laboratory. Dicks father, Connie,
was a superintendent of inspec-
ton at the Naval Gun Factory.
There were lot Of enlisted Naval
personnel in the housing project
and Dick was always crazy to 60
into the Navy. When he was sent
to Chamberlain Vocational School
he started to run away. So they
let him enter the Navy at II. He
served two years in the activated
reserve at the Naval Air Station.
Pleased at Job.
Dick got out of the Navy only
last November, and it was then
that he got the job with ERGO. His
father was quite pleased with the
steady way he had worked since,
Mrs. Murdza said. and was talk
ing about getting him a job at
higher pay in the gun factory.
She had called her husband and
told him about Dicks arrest and
his immediate, hurt reaction was:
LET him take care of himself. "
In Commissioner Cyril j.
Lawrence's room in the Municipal
Building she sat in a front row.
waiting dry-eyed. But silent tears
came when Dicks name was
called and he came through the
door.
Dick tried to ignore her. He
was going to waive his right to a
hearing, But Mr.. Lawrence said
your mother is here"
She came forward. your honor,
I don't know anything about
what to do" she said. Mr.. Law
renee told her that he was not
going to let the boy waive any
of his rights and that he was
scheduling the case for a hearing
on January Is.
Allowed to Talk to Son.
She was the only mother there
and was allowed to talk to her
son a minute in the prisoners
room. Dick couldn't ignore her
this time as he stood there hand
cuffed to his friend Joe. He wept.
A marshall told her she could
see him in jail. She went out
there in a taxi.
She presented herself at the
big gate, but it did not open. In
stead a voice from a loud speaker
in the gate told her that visiting