Montgomery County sentinel. [volume], March 31, 1960, Image 1

About Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974

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104th Tor - No. 17 ILU. MARYLAND MARCH 31, IWI 3 SBCTIONS 3O PAGIS ftArd— 4-7700 Tati Casts a Copy
U. S. Jury
Will Probe
Smith Case
Police Beating
Charge to Be
Weighed April 19
A federal grand jury will
look into charges by Melvin
W. Smith that he was beaten
by four Montgomery County
policemen December 17 after
Smith, himself, had attacked
one of the officers in a court
room outburst.
The case, which culminated
In the acquittal of the four
officers on assult charges and
Smith’s own conviction for
striking the policeman, was re
ferred to the grand jury in
Baltimore for consideration
April 19 following a Federal
Bureau of Investigating probe
of alleged civil rights violations.
Besides being acquitted In
police court, the officers were
cleared of improper conduct by
former County Manager Melvin
R. Reese, who conducted his
own investigation following the
court hearing.
A proposed State investiga
tion of the charges was side
tracked pending the outcome of
a Department of Justice probe.
Just this week, however, the
county grand jury began its
own study of the incident and
was scheduled to report publicly
its findings late yesterday
after the Sentinel went to press.
County officials learned of
the impending federal action
after the local probe was under
way and 22 witnesses had been
subpoenaed. Sixteen of the
witnesses had been questioned
by the grand jury when recess
was called late Tuesday, and
the remaining six were sched
uled to testify yesterday.
Objective of the county grand
Jury investigation has not been
made clear, since all of the
principals in the case already
have been tried on charges aris
ing from the incident. State’s
Attorney Leonard T. Kardy
conceded that additional criminal
indictments could entail “double
jeopardy”—the prohibited pro
cess of trying a defendant more
than once on the same charge.
However, since the Depart
ment of Justice investigation
was conducted from the stand
point of civil rights, the federal
jury could —if it found suffi
cient evidence —bring in charges
of civil rights abridgement that
that would not run afoul of the
“double jeopardy” clause.
Since being asked by the Civil
Rights Division of the Depart
ment of Justice to look into the
case, the FBI has remained
noncommital on the progress of
the investigation. An FBI
spokesman again this week de
clined to discuss the case on
the ground it is still under in
vestigation, but admitted he
“could not deny” the report that
the case is scheduled for grand
jury consideration April 19.
Smith charged he was beaten
by the four officers as he was
being taken in handcuffs to the
county jail after he punched
Det. Sgt. Frank Griggs during
a melee which erupted when
Smith’s stepbrother was con
victed of a rape charge.
Accused of participating in
the assault, along with Griggs,
were Deputy Sheriff Ralph
Offutt, Detective John A. Bech
tel and Pvt. Cornelius DeVries,
Jr.
The officers were acquitted
of the assault charges in a
morning hearing before Judge
John B. Diamond in Peoples
Court. That afternoon he tried
Smith and sentenced the
Gaithersburg youth to three
years in jail, suspending two
years of the sentence.
Following the court hearings,
investigations were formally re
quested by the county branch
of the National Association for
the Advancement of Colored
People and the county’s League
of Women Voters. The most
recent probe, by the county
grand jury, reportedly was in
stigated by the jury itself.
HittoNcri {Mi SoM
Lakewood
Club Area
Annexed
By Joan Stern
Staff Correspondent
Rockville City Council
Tuesday annexed a 246 acre
area west of the city includ
ing the Lakewood Country
Club which is now under
construction.
The area annexed is east of
Glen Mill rd„ west of Falls rd.,
and extends from the city limits
to points north and south of
Veirs dr., and Scott dr.
The country club, composed jf
161 acres of the annexed land
and 50 acres of land already
within the city limits, will pro
vide swimming, golfing, tennis,
and a clubhouse for its mem
bers.
The remaining 85 acres of the
annexed land is held by devel
oper Marvin W. Simmons who
said he eventually will develop
it residentially.
This action pushes the city
limits to the edge of a 392 acre
tract outside the proposed fu
ture expansion area but recent
ly requested for annexation by
Lake Bernard Estates, Inc.
At that time, residents in
Hunting Hills, in Montgomery
County, strongly criticized the
request, using as one of their
strongest arguments that the
Lake Bernard Estates area wa*
contiguous to existing city boun
daries for only 300 feet.
Two council members, Mayor
Alexander J. Greene and Joseph
C. Rodgers disqualified them
selves from considering the
question of annexing the coun
try club tract or voting on it.
Mayor Greene is an honorary
member of the country club and
Rodgers, a consulting engineer,
said he had professional associ
ations with the club.
In other business the coun
cil awarded a $1,700,000 bond
issue to Alex Brown and Sons
of Baltimore who submitted the
low bid of 3.67 percent interest.
Major purposes of this issue
will be to pay for a major
storm-drainage project, to build
a civic auditorium and to pur
chase parklands.
County Aides Muy
Soon Be Riding
In Compact Curs
Montgomery County may
buy a fleet of 10 “compact”
cars this year as an experi
ment in economy.
According to acting coun
ty manager Mason A. Butch
er, the cars would be used
for one-person service by Pub
lic Health nurses, building in
spectors, etc. Careful per
formance records will be kept
to see how the pint-sized cars
stack up against standard
models.
Tag Deadline Tonight
New auto tags must be at
tached to county automobiles
by midnight tonight. They may
be purchased until 5 p.m. to
day in the County Office Build
ing, Rockville.
Almost Dead
Fish Were Spread Out
Over Acres of Water
Be sure to read the
strange story in this week’s
issue of the Sentinel told
by the Sentinel’s fishing
editor, Capt. Gene Hunt, of
Chesapeake Beach, Md.
It’s a weird tale that, of
course, has an explanation
but Capt. Hunt and other
lifelong residents of the
bay area don’t know what
it is. Turn to the sports
pages in Section B. Maybe
you’ll have the answer.
The fishing column is
A, Law
As ,ay NAACP Branch
A proposal to outlaw racial
discrimination at public
places in Montgomery Coun
ty is being pressed by the
county branch of the Nation
al Association for Advance
ment of Colored People.
A suggested draft of such a
law has been submitted by the
NAACP to the county council
with a request that a public
hearing be held on the proposal.
Language proposed by the
NAACP for the suggested new
law is:
“No owner, proprietor, man
ager or operator of any res
taurant, tavern, bar, soda
fountain, other eating or
drinking place, motel, hotel,
hospital, motion picture or
other theatre, bowling alleys,
or amusement or recreation
park, shall permit his estab
lishment (1) to refuse to
serve any person on equal
terms with other patrons on
account of his race, creed,
color or national origin, or
(2) to discriminate on that ac
count in service, price, or
place or quality of accommo
dation.
“Any person or corpora
tion violating this ordinance
shall he fined SIOO upon a
He's 'Available'
County Manager’s Job
Eyed by James Lynch
By Steed Evans
Staff Reporter
James J. Lynch, treasurer
of the Washington Suburban
Sanitary Commission, told
the Sentinel this week he
would accept the job of
county manager. *lf enough
of the county council wants me,
I’m ready and available,’* he
**id. v
Lynch was the number two
choice for the job that went to
Melvin L. Reese back in 1955.
Reese left this month to become
city manager of Miami, Fla.
“My decision will depend on
how the situation develops. I
want a good indication they
(the council) are interested in
me after they have received
Event Starts Today
Midtown Merchants
Giving Away SBOO
Some lucky Rockville shopper Is going to be SSOO
richer on Saturday night.
As part of their “April Sweepstakes” promotion, the
Midtown Rockville Merchants’ Association is offering a
SSOO first prize in cash as well as second and third prizes
of SIOO each, also in cash.
More than 20,000 “sweep
stakes” tickets were mailed to
Rockville area residents this
week. All you have to do is
take your ticket to the 53 par
ticipating stores except where
otherwise noted, and have it
stamped at each store. Then, at
the last store you visit, drop the
“ticket” in the box.
All tickets will be collected in
time for a drawing Saturday at
8 p.m. on Court House Square,
according to Irwin Schwartz,
association president.
Persons under 16 must be ac
companied by one of their par
ents in order to participate in
the contest. Names and ad
dresses of the participating
stores are listed on the sweep
stakes ticket
only one of the many Sen
tinel features you’ll want
to be sure to read regularly.
Capt. Hunt reports Ches
apeake Bay fishing news
weekly while the Sentinel’s
Lefty Kreh, keeps you
posted each week on fish
ing in inland water and
Maryland hunting. If you
aren't already a Sentinel
subscriber, call GArden
4-7700 and subscribe now.
It’s only $4 a year delivered
to your mail box.
first conviction and SSOO upon
any subsequent conviction;
and upon any such subse
quent conviction the license
of the establishment to do
business shall, except in the
case of a hospital, auto
matically be suspended for 90
days.”
In its letter to Council Presi
dent Grover K. Walker, the
NAACP branch pointed out it
had made a similar request to
the council on April 17, 1959.
Florence Orbach, the group’s
social action chairman, said
that on April 23 the group was
advised the matter had been re
ferred to the county attorney.
On May 6, she continued, Coun
ty Attorney Alfred Carter prom
ised the group he would study,
the legal aspects of the request.
Since then, the NAACP has
heard nothing, Mrs. Orbach
said.
Carter told a reporter this
week he had made a legal check
of the proposal and reported
his findings “informally” to the
county council. They were, he
said, that he could find no au
thority for the county to adopt
such a law.
“Such measures have been in
troduced in the General Assem
bly in the past,” he said, “and
this type of law is usually
handled by the state.”
ail applications,” Lynch said.
About 35 applicants are seek
ing the job. When he left, Reese
was earning $25,000 a year.
Lynch earns $15,860 a year and
says he is “very happy in my
job.”
He said he had been ap
proached by members of the
Sanitary Commission with
promise they would work for a
higher salary for Lynch if that
would induce him to stay. At
the same time, one member of
the county council has report
edly said he would back Lynch
for the job.
The county has decided not to
make public the names of latest
applicants.
Former Rockville Mayor Dick
(Please Turn to Page Al 4)
Purpose or the promotion,
Schwartz explained, is to unveil
spring and easter merchandise
in the 53 stores. Many special
bargains and sales will be
offered during the period of the
promotion—t oda y, tomorrow
and Saturday.
Contest officials emphasized
that the cards will be stamped
today, tomorrow and Saturday
only after which the contest
will end.
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SOME OF THE 1000 persons who showed up at Monday night’s
public hearing on the school budget are shown In this photo
graph taken by a Sentinel staff photographer In the gym at
Broome Jr. High School. Note group of 50 or more In upper
center of picture that resorted to sitting in the bleachers
A Century of Service
Throng Hits Reese
School Funds Cuts
jjjppifr.
ALMOST GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN are
these tired remnants of March’s 21 inches
of snow decorated here by Roberta
Phinney, 20, of Rockville. This picture was
taken Tuesday on Goldmine rd., North of
Ashton. Miss Phinney chose a Spring en
semble because of the warm weather that
Firemen
Plagued by
130 Fires
More than 130 brush fires
plagued the county Sunday
through Tuesday as warm
weather and Spring fever
prompted residents to burn ac
cumulated trash and rubbish
outdoors.
The sharp upswing in brusih
fires prompted acting county
manager Mason A. Butcher to
warn that It is illegal to burn
trash and leaves outdoors ex
cept between the hours of 4 and
10 p.m., during March, April
and May.
A very cold March froze the
ground, permitting little
moisture to soak into tinder-dry
weeds and foliage. Dry condi
tions and gusty Spring breezes.
Butcher warned, are ideal con
ditions under which trash fires
get out of hand.
Violators of trash burning or
dinances are subject to six
months In jail and a fine of
SIOO, he added.
The fireboard at Washington
Grove reported a total of 30
fires during the three-day pe
riod whereas the Silver Spring
board reported 80.
stayed in the upper 60’s and 70’s Sunday,
Monday and Tuesday. Advent of April balmi
ness and Miss Phinney’s togs accented the
Shakesperian axiom: “Well-apparell’d April
on the heel of limping Winter treads.”
Staff Photo.
Start Plan Now!
Big County ‘Center’
Is Urged by Frosh
A Montgomery County
municipal center big enough
to seat 3000 and accommo
date operas and other full
fledged stage productions
was urged this week by County
Councilman Stanley B. Frosh.
Frosh proposed that the coun
cil set aside $25,000 for plans.
No action was taken on his pro
posal, however, pending further
studies.
Aside from the auditorium,
the building proposed by Frosh
would include rooms for musi
cal recitals, theater-in-the-round,
dance perfomances, musical and
art instruction rooms and an
art gallery.
Many of these recommenda
tions already have been incor
porated by Montgomery County
Arts Center, Inc., a nonprofit
organization also seeking to
build a place for cultural ac
tivities in the county.
Frosh said grounds around
the proposed center should be
spacious enough to contain a
sports center. A municipal
swimming pool that would con
when the throng filled up the 800 seats placed on the gym
floor. Many citizens had their say and left, others stayed
only briefly but nearly all of the seats were occupied for
most of the evening.
Staff I‘hoto.
vert into an ice skating rink, a
baseball-football field and other
athletic facilities should be in
corporated, Frosh said.
He said he was told by the
Park and Planning Commission
that publicly owned land might
be available in the Wheaton Re
gional Park and In park re
gion six (southeast of Rockville
along Veirs Mill rd.).
Frosh proposed that such a
community center should be
managed perhaps by an expand
ed board of recreation, as was
suggested in a recent report on
combined parks-recreatlon ad
ministration.
He also said that the venture
could be leased for operation to
the county’s Revenue Authority.
But J. Ingram Medley, RA
chairman, cautioned that while
fees might sustain public recre
ation facilities, he doubted that
they would be sufficient to liqui
date bonds issued to construct
a project as large as the one
Frosh proposed.
“For something of that size,
(Please Turn to Page Al 4)
Food, Home News
County housewives should
avail themselves this week of
The Sentinel’s informative new
food section (Section C), featur
ing bargains at local stores.
Read the county’s only regular
food section in The Sentinel!
More Than 1000
Attend Hearing
Held by Council
By William H. Smith
Staff Reporter
Montgomery County par
ents gave the County Coun
cil a convincing demonstra
tion this week that they have
little liking for former Coun
ty Manager Melvin L. Reese’s
recommendations for sharp
cuts in the 1960-61 school
budget.
A throng estimated at 1000
jammed Broome Junior High
School auditorium, and most of
them applauded enthusiastically
as a parade of speakers march
ed to the rostrum and sailed
into the manager’s budget pro
posals. The marathon hearing
was recessed at 11 p.m. after
30 speakers had been heard,
and was resumed Tuesday
night.
All but a handful of speakers
implored the council to restore
the allocations deleted by Reese,
and some wanted the county
heads to go further by provid
ing facilities beyond those
originally recommended by the
Board of Education.
What little support was
given the Reese proposals came
for the most part from the
Council for Better Education
in a report which agreed with
many of Reese’s recommenda
tion. The council also ques
tioned other requested appro
priations not specifically singled
out by Reese.
The 50 • minute presentation
by William E. Yost, jr., preab
dent of the council; Charles F.
James, director, and Dr.
Thomas M. Wilson, treasurer,
contended the Board of Educa
tion’s budgets for capital im
provements, operation and spe
cial education and psychological
services were all excessive.
While the group did recom
mend restoration of three of
the five new school construc-
I tion projects deleted by Reese,
It called for reduction of the
size of one of them and con
\ tended other new schools ar.d
(school additions planned by the
Board of Education will provide
unnecessary classrooms.
Yost, in discussing the op
(Continued on Page 14)
Eig Zoning
Is Okayed
By Council
Final approval of apart
ment zoning for 34 acres
mid-way between Rdckville
and Gaithersburg was
granted this week by the
county council.
The land is owned by Silver
Spring financier Sam Eig, who
also owns the surrounding 109
acres that only weeks ago were
approved for golf course use.
Eig announced he plans to
spend sls million on the apart
ment development which is in
tended to serve high salaried
workers in science Industries
narby, as well as at the Atomic
Energy Commission to the
north.
The land was zoned for rural
use. Eig contended that mush
rooming science and other light
industry around the intersec
tion of Shady Grove rd. and
U. S. 240 Just to the south, and
across dual 240 from the apart
ments, Justified the change in
zoning.
Vote on the zoning applica
tion was 61, with Stanley B.
Frosh dissenting. Ever since
Frosh was elected last year, he
has been a staunch opponent
oi land use not keyed into zon
ing policy set by the council.
Elg’s new apartments will be
miles north of any other apart
.ments, in predominantly farm
land.
Stella B. Werner, who earlier
said she was undecided on Eig’s
application, voted in favor of
the apartments when she learn
ed. she said, the project would
contribute "only 172 high school
and 85 elementary students” to
area schools.