Evening star., 1953-07-21
Rover BIanles
Aide for SIS
Watson Fine
Judge Myers Says
He Acted on Busis
Of Duto Given Him

Judge Frank H. Myers-was to
blame for Clarence E. Watson,
jr., being at large the night Miss
Alyce o. Taggart was slain.
Judge Myers was criticized on
Capitol Hill yesterday for free
ing Watson with a $25 fine in
January when the youth accused
of killing Miss Taggart was ar
rested on charges of tampering
with an auto and carrying a
deadly weapon. The tampering
charge was dropped before the
case reached Judge Myers.
Both Representative Rivers,
Democrat. of South Carolina and
Representative Broyhill, Repub-
lican, of Virginia contended that
Miss Taggart would have been
alive today if Watson had re-
ceived a sitter punishment. Mr..
Broyhill said he had asked Mr..
Rover for a complete report on
the circumstances. The Janu-
ary case, however, was prose-
cuted under former United States
Attorney Charles Irelan, Mr..
Rover's predecessor.
Judge Myers told a press con-
ference requested by reporters
that he sentenced Watson on the
evidence placed before him, re-
called no mention that the
weapon in the case was switch
blade knife, and recalled seeing
no previous record on the youth.
Was on Parole. !
Watson at that time was on
parole from the National Train
ing School for Boys. His parole
would not have been up until
September. 1854. |
Mr.. Rover said today he con-
cluded that Judge Myers had not
been given all the facts, first
because Judge Myers said he had
not received them and, secondly,
because Mr.. Rover is sure Judge
Myers would have made an
entirely different disposition Of
the case if the facts had been
brought to his attention.
The United States Attorney |
said the statement of facts pre-
sented by police to the United
States Attorneys Office in jan
uary mentioned that the knife
was a Switchblade knife. The
statement. he said. also noted
that Watson had been sent to
Juvenile Court on two ROBBERY
charges in September, 1851. and |
that he was on parole from the |
National Training School at the
time he was arrested in the jan
uary case.
Sure of Judges Action.
Mr.. Rover said he was sure
that if Judge Myers had known
the youth was a parolee, he
would have turned Watson back
to the training school where his
parole probably would have been
revoked and he would have re-
manned in the institution until
September, 1854.
MY assistant must not have
told Judge Myers that Watson
was a parolee," Mr.. Rover con-
cluded He is out of town and
I can't ask him but if I did, he
probably would not remember
with more than so cases in court
that day.
Il have instructed my assist
ants that, where a man pleads
guilty, the assistant must give
the judge all the facts, since that
is the only way the judge will
know them. There is no poSsi-
bility of anything like this hap
pening again. There is no excuse
for not giving the judge all the
facts"
Both Mr.. Rover and Judge
Meyers noted that there was
nothing in the official report
from police of any sexual intent
noted in the January case. In
that case, Watson was found
lying in the back of a parked car
by two women. An off-duty po-
liceman was attracted to the
scene by their screams and
switchblade knife was found on
him.
Il have no recollection that it
was a switch-blade knife" said
Judge Myers. II have a horror
of switchbladeS. I've given quite
heavy sentences for carrying
those things in the past.
Alternative Was Jail Term.
This is an unfortunate case,
but there's nothing I could have
done about it," the judge said.
What good would it have done
to give the man, say, so days?"
The alternative in Judge
Myers sentence to the $25 fine
was 80 days in jail. Watson, how
ever. paid the fine.
The police might have had
more on the Watson case, but
if they did it was not presented
to me-" the jurist said. "I think
if the Congressman would in
vestigate, he'd find out the same
thing.
"The police have criticized us
in the past for our sentences,
but we do the best we can with
what we have. I can't act diff
ferently in a case unless the ne
cessary things are presented to
me-"
Follows Three Steps.
The judge explained that he
always tried to do three things:
81. Look at the nature of the
crime.
30. Look at the defendants
background for any previous pat
tern of criminal conduct.