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Dodge announces grand jury hearings, March 20
The Mayor communicated with me last night and at his request I will immediately present to the Grand Jury the evidence I have procured in connection with the riot. My purpose in presenting the matter at once is to let the Communists know that they cannot come into this country and upset our laws. From my information, Communists distributed literature and took an active part in the rioting.
The three-sentence statement was quoted in full by the Home News and New York Herald Tribune. Three other papers, the New York American, New York Post, and New York Times paraphrased the mention of the mayor’s request and quoted the two sentences blaming Communists for the disorder. The New York Sun, Daily Mirror, New York Evening Journal, and New York World-Telegram, as well as the Daily Worker, quoted only the second sentence, Dodge’s statement about his purpose in starting the investigation was to send a message to Communists. The Times Union reported Dodge had begun an investigation without mention of his statement.
Only a small proportion of those publications reported any details of the proposed investigation. The New York Post and Times Union mentioned the number of subpoenaed witnesses. The Times Union explained the delayed start as the result of “the great number of suspects being questioned by police, wide-spread complaints and the mass of information confronting officials.” Another explanation was offered in the New York Post: “the detail involved was so great that the evidence could not be presented to the Grand Jury today.” The New York Sun reported that “the policemen and citizens needed as witnesses were unable to appear, being busy in other courts as the prisoners arrested during the riot were being arraigned.”
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This page references:
- "Mobs Rove Harlem After Riot; 1 Dead, 100 Hurt in Harlem Riot; Snipers Routed, Mobs Rove Area," New York World-Telegram, March 20, 1935, 1.
- "Alien Squads Hunt Harlem Red Lairs," Daily Mirror, March 21, 1935 [clipping].
- "1 Dies, 9 Dying in Harlem Riot," New York Evening Journal, March 20, 1935, 1.
- C. C. Nicolet, "One Dead in Wake of Harlem Riots," New York Post, March 20, 1935 [clipping].
- "650 Police Patrol Harlem to Block Renewed Rioting," New York Herald Tribune, March 21, 1935, 1, 2.
- "Snipers Routed, Looter is Slain in Harlem Riot," Times Union, March 20, 1935, 1, 4.
- "Dodge Begins Investigation of Worst Disorders Here in Years," New York Sun, March 20, 1.
- "Police End Harlem Riot," New York Times, March 21, 1935, 1.
- "Negro Harlem Terrorized," Daily Worker, March 21, 1935, 1, 2.
- "Police Charge 500 After Youths Raid Store," New York American, March 21, 1935, 1.