People ex rel. Murphy v. Waldo

• Decision Date: 05 June 1914
• Citation: 147 N.Y.S. 1005,162 A.D. 867
• Parties: THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK ex rel. PHILIP J. MURPHY, Relator, v. RHINELANDER WALDO, as Police Commissioner of the City of New York, Respondent.
• Court: New York Supreme Court

162 A.D. 867

147 N.Y.S. 1005

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK ex rel. PHILIP J. MURPHY, Relator, v. RHINELANDER WALDO, as Police Commissioner of the City of New York, Respondent.

Supreme Court of New York, First Department.

June 5, 1914

CERTIORARI issued out of the Supreme Court and duly attested, directed to Rhinelander Waldo, as police commissioner of the city of New York, commanding him to certify and return to the office of the clerk of the county of New York all and singular his proceedings had in dismissing the relator from his position as patrolman in the police department of the city of New York.

COUNSEL

Isidore Cohen, for the relator.

Terence Farley [Leon H. Futter with him on the brief], for the respondent.

LAUGHLIN, J.:

The charge which the relator was required to answer, and upon which he was tried and dismissed, was 'Conduct to the Prejudice of Good Order and Discipline,' and the specifications thereof were that knowing that Patrolman William Cohen received $100 from one Epstein, a complainant in a criminal investigation which Cohen and relator were conducting, failed 'to report same to proper authorities.' The relator pleaded not guilty and was tried before Third Deputy Commissioner Walsh, before whom Cohen had been tried on a charge based on his having received the money. The testimony taken on Cohen's trial was stipulated into this case, so far as applicable, without calling the witnesses.

Cohen and the relator had been detailed to the seventh precinct for detective work and assigned to the investigation of crimes relating to the poisoning of horses and to extortion in connection therewith. They had been most successful and had secured the arrest and conviction of several of the leaders in the commission of such crimes, and their work was highly commended by Second Deputy Commissioner Dougherty, who testified that he personally investigated the conditions with which they were dealing where horse poisoning was rampant and their work, and that 'they rendered the very best service,' and that he was 'more than pleased with the intelligent way both men had done their work on the Epstein complaint.' On the 13th of June, 1912, said Epstein, who kept a livery stable and boarded horses at 238 Cherry street on the lower east side, in the borough of Manhattan, New York, complained to the police that one of the horses in his stable had been poisoned and that the poisoning of others had been threatened, and Cohen and the relator were assigned to the case. Prior to August twenty-fifth that year Epstein lost three more horses through poisoning, and then, evidently owing to the efforts of the detectives to locate the criminals and to the arrest by them of one Levine, the poisoning ceased. Epstein appears to have assumed that Cohen had principal charge of the case, for he called at the precinct station nearly every day and interviewed Cohen with respect to the progress of the investigation. One Moe Levison, known as 'John L.,' was indicted, and the detectives were endeavoring to arrest him for attempting to extort money under a threat to poison more of Epstein's horses. On the evening of August thirty-first Epstein called on Cohen at the station house, and Cohen informed him that a Miss Glick, with whom he had just been talking over the telephone, 'had a young man who wants a hundred dollars' for telling the detectives where to find 'John L.' Epstein had information to the effect that more horses would be poisoned soon, and felt keenly the loss he had sustained and dreaded the consequences to him and to those dependent upon him of further loss. He at once offered to put up the money, but Cohen assured him that it would not be necessary, and that they would soon succeed in making the arrest. Epstein repeatedly urged Cohen to take the money, and stated that he would be willing to give three times the amount to secure the arrest at once, and felt the matter so keenly that he cried. Finally Cohen suggested that perhaps he could arrange to accomplish the desired result by having Miss Glick merely show the money to the 'young man' known as Red Calahan, and Epstein waited at the station house while he went to interview her. Within an hour Epstein was given a telephone message to meet Cohen at the Bowery and Grand street. It is to be inferred that Cohen asked to have the relator join him there also, for another detective accompanied Epstein until they met the relator, who then went with Epstein to join Cohen. They found Cohen and Miss Glick awaiting them. Cohen called Epstein aside and said that Miss Glick would do as desired and asked Epstein for the $100. Epstein handed it...