Milford chronicle., 1956-02-10
Sussex Magistrate
Indicted By jury
CONTINUED from first page)

other cases, in addition to Magis-
trate Short.
She Short indictment set forth
three specific cases -in which money
was collected by him and which, it
was claimed. had not been included
IN the itemized financial statement
made by Short to Charles =. Barr.
4 county comptroller.
Witnesses for the state, who
waited i've hours to be called be-
fore the grand jury, included Comp
trOller Barr, Mrs. Beatrice Wyatt,
deputy county comptroller; sConsta-
4 bic Brice Hughes, Bridgeville, and
the following officers Of the state
police stationed at Bridgeville: 1t.
Charles Cullen, Chief Investigator
Willard Thomson, and Detective
Allen ]. Wentz.
The three cases mentioned in the
Indictment follow.
That Magistrate Short failed to
report a fine Of SIS received by him
On or about March "a. 1855, from
one Grace Thomas on behalf Of
Amos Beauchamp, Jr., who was
convicted on charge of petty lar
ceny.
That he failed to account for a
fine of SO received by him from
Ernest PagkfTss on May 2, 1855, on
charge l5f assault and battery.
and that on the same date he re-
ceived a fine Of $40, also from Pas
Eins, on a charge of disorderly con
duct, which he failed to report
1t was further charged that the
magistrate on June 13, 1855, pre-
sented a false statement to Comp
brOller Barr in which he represent
ed that he had not received the
costs for the hearing Of the Paskins
/ iisOrderly conduct charge and that
reimbursement was made to the
magistrate. "As a matter Of fact, =
he Indictment states, "all costs in
said case had been paid by Pas
kins"
Mr.. Short, active in Republican
politics, and a former painter in
Bridgeville, is serving his second
.erm as magistrate His term eX1
pires January 1, 1857.
In all SO witnesses were called
before the grand jury in the five
cases presented, with 13 Witnesses
for the Short case alone. 1t was
$3.50 p. m. when the indictments
we're returned to Judge James B
Carey.
Also indicted were Bennie Lee
Rothermel, from the Rehoboth
area, on two counts of forgery,
md Risden PassWaters, Lewes,l for
fmOt0r vehicle manslaughter.
Ignored by the grand Jury were
motor vehicle mansiaughter cases
against Walter Jones Young, for
! the death Of James Thomas Spence.
SO, a pedestrian, near Millsboro, on
November 5, 1855, and Verncn
Vaughn, "a, for the death by drown
'ng Of passenger, Joseph GOul
%, when Vaughn's car left the
highway near Laurel on January
8 and plunged into a millpond.
In the only manslaughter indict-
nent returned Passwaters was
charged with the death of Louis G.
Hayden, 19, also of Lewes. The ac-
eident was at 1918 p. m, Decem-
Der 2, 1865, about two miles south
Of Milford on Route IA.
The indictment contained FIVE
counts including drunken driving,
Other counts were failure to main
tain a proper lookout, speed great
or that was feasible under existing
conditions, including the fact that
the highway was under construc-
lion at the time; disregard of the
safety of others, in that his car
left the highway and ploWed into
an embankment, and speeding at a
rate in excess of rs miles an hour
n a 35-mile zone.
Arraigned directly after the re-
port of the grand jury, PassWaters
pleaded not guilty and trial before
a jury will be set for this term of
court. He is represented by H. Ed
ward Maull.
| The Rothermel forgery indict-
ment listed his alias as Benny
Rothermel' and charged that on
October IA, 1855, he cashed checks
for SIS and $65 at the Midway
Package Store, Lewes-R -Rehoboth
Hundred, with intent to defraud
Phillip Kaye. The checks were
drawn on the Sussex Trust Com
pany Of Milton and purported to
be the checks Of George E. Walters.
William B. Derriokson, RehOboth
Beach, was chosen. foreman of the
grand jury which met for the first
time since January l. -Four new
members were chosen to replace
those whose terms expired on that
date.
Mrs. Jean H. CranstOn, Bridge
vile, was named secretary Of the
jury.