Wilkes-Barre Sunday Independent

              Why They 'Get Away with Murder' in County
A Paper For The H(ime
SUNDAY INDEPENDENT
SNOW, COLD
Highest Today M to ,'?8 Monday:   Cloudy,   Colder
52ND YEAR —NO. 7
Member Andit Bureau of ClrmlatloB
WILKES-BARRE, PA., SUNDAY DECEMBER 8, 1957
TMTKD  PRF!«jl
Wire  Nen-s Service
PRK E 20 CENTS
Plains Mother and Child Killed In Pike Crash: Father Critical
Four Newtown Area Hunters Missing Near Loyalville
Regional police early today were searching for four New¬ town area hunters reported lost In the woods back of Loyalville. In the party were State Police of Wyoming Barracks and Police Chief of   Harvey'f
dress; John Cunningham, 16, and William Priando, 20, both of Newtown but no street addresses available.
The authorities said they left on the hunting trip early yesterday morning and were still missing at midnjght. Their car was found parl<ed at the Kupstas Store in Loyal-
Serhan Case Was Left to City Detectives, Who Are Least Equipped for Tasl(
With il u.suall) taken for granted that the fjg' ""«'- solution of murder cases is one of the really ' The missing hunters were necessary protections offered the people by their identified^ « ///te^'st.; government, the people of Luzerne l.ounty nave pa^l Yuknavich, is, same ad- three directions in which to turn: ^       ' " '""'
1. Municipal police. 2. State Police. 3. The district attornev and his county detectives.
Yet in tlie ca.se of the "Rita Serhan Murder Case," which occurred in Wilkes-Barre on last April 6 or 7— and which may or may not have been a murder—prac¬ tically the whole problem was dumped into the l-^p of the linit least equipped for the job, least able . . cope
with it and, to be fair about it, never really expected '^'"^-	
to   handle   such  affairs,   the  Wilkea-Barre  Detective,
"*^^The State Police "made no investigation," merely'[jJ^pflQ^gf
took pictures.
The activities of the district attorney and his de¬ tectives were almost as neprlisrible.
That left everythinjir up to Detective Captain .Joseph  Murray  and  his  group,  which  i.s  mostly  """^      .. ¦
trained, unequipped and really was never intended to f 1|. l/annil2irn handle such a task \J[\   fdliyUCirU
Murray Did His Best
It also is worth noting that the man with the most experience as a city detective, Frank Flynn, is now a county detective after having retired on pension from the Wilkes-Barre force.
In spite of all this. Captain Murray obviously did the best he could with what he had and made a sincere effort. . . . But it takes more than that.
These are some of Ihe rea.sons why the investi¬ gation proceeded on the basis of believing that Mrs. Serhan had been killed by a blow on the head with a hatchet, despite the fact that post mortem indicated that the wound taken for a hatchet blow hardly could have caused death while another wound nearby .seemed deadly.
Yet this was a wound which caused a fracture of:-'j'^,Je^c^uJd^„ot^mention ^fo^^ the skull such as would have been caused by a round,^gard no ihention of sabotage, object. ... On the floor near the bod.v* was a round    otherwise, he said, the report knob which had been knocked off a dresser. covers "not much more" than
There is more than a slight resemblance here to was explained publicly by the
Gets Report
Publicity Build-Up Before Failure Has President's Support
GETTYSBURG, Pa. (IP) —Acting Defense Secre¬ tary Donald Ar Qtuucles sent President Eisenhower
a  preliminary  report  yest^rdayiu ^ l^j.	
on  the Vanguard rocket's fail-r ODG ^OmDieXeS ure. I '
White House Press Secretary James C. Hagerty said the writ¬ ten report contains "one or two things" about parts of the rocket
U.S. Missile Program Gefs Another Seibacic
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (tP^The Air Force tried to give the nation's sagging missile morale a boost by launching a Thor yesterday from near the spot where the Vanguard failed, but the intermediate range projectile fell short of its target area.
The big military missile was launched smoothly. It arose with a burst of flame and a tremendous roar from a launching pad near the Vanguard's at this missile test-center. Then it knifed upward through a partial overcast with increasing speed and disappeared into clear blue sky.
But the Defense Department in Washington admitted almost two hours later that this fourth Thor to be suce.ssfully launched had "landed short of the intended target area," An announce¬ ment issued five minutes after the late-afternoon launching called it a success.
i
Enroute Home to Attend I Funeral of Kin at Time^
Parted by Highway Crash
Be on fhe Alert For Bogus Money
WASHINGTON (IP — U. E. Baughman, chief of the U. S. Secret Service, warned mer¬ chants and Christmas shoppers yesterday to be on guard against passers of counterfeit money.
"Counterfeit note passers," he said in a special holiday season warning, "are oppor¬ tunists who are quick to take advantage of the Christmas shopping rush."
He urged merchants and shoppyers to take a careful look at the curpenry they receive.
Racket Probers Told of Blast
Two Teamsters Placed at Site
W A S H I N G T 0 N (IP) — The Senate Rackets Committee heard testimo¬ ny yesterday that one Teamsters Union official threat¬ ened a KnoxviJIe, Tenn., grocer I before his store was dynamited and that another was on the j scene when the blast occurred. I B. B. Powers, the food market operator, said his store was dy¬ namited Sept. 5, 19,^6, les.s than 48 hours after he was threat¬ ened with "trouble" by William J. Reynolds, then president of the Knoxville Team.ster.s Local 621. He said Reynolds made the
Sgt. 1/c and Mrs. Anthony Mikelski Jr. on a happ.v occa¬ sion—their wedding day seven years ago. Yesterday Mrs. Mikelski and her sTx-month-old daughter Susan were killed in a crash on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The sergeant's condition early today was critical.
Week of Prayer
VATICAN   CITY    OP) — Pope Pius  XII completed a  week of,
pre-Christmas spiritual exercises! threat   because  he  was   seH'ns B-J^-_•_     C,**,.»«»     kJ^m^    Omwmm* yesterday morning and resumedUoft  drinks  bottled  in  a  P'ant 011(01 II    0665    iWiOTC    nQfUl
audiences interrupted during theithat  Reynolds  claimed  was on
annual   period   of   prayer   and^strike.
meditation. i    Two other witnesses testified
The Pope, concealed by a vel
that W. A. Smith, business agent
Than Good in NATO Meet
heard the list .er- l.~"''.''j"S',.1"? •.,':~«'S     LONDd.S'
was   near   Powers'   store   about
(IP)—Responsible   Briti.-<h   officials  ycs-
A   Plain.s   Township mother   and   her   six- month-old   child   were killed  yesterday  after¬ noon   and   the   child's father injured critically when his car strtick the rear of a tractor-trailer on the ea.^t-west Penn¬ sylvania   Turnpike   six miles east of Somerset. Elsie ^likelski, 26, and her   daughter,   Susan, vvei'e    killed    instantly when  a car driven hy her   husband   Sgt.   1 c Anthony   Mikelski,   28, smashed into the trac¬ tor-trailer on the rain¬ swept highway.
Two other Mikelski chil¬ dren, Michael, four, and John, three, were shaken up, but not injured.
Sergeant Mikelski, sta¬ tioned at Fort Knox, Ky„ was on emergency leave to attend the funeral of a relative at Plains.
He was reported in criti¬ cal condition at Somerset C^ommunity Ho.spital with .severe lacerations of the head and scalp and a pos- • sihle  fr.ictlived skuil.
The f,imily of five left Fort Knox on Kriday for the long trek fo the home of .Ser^jt'.int Mikelski's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Mikelski Sr., 7 Wyo¬ ming St, Plains. They planned to attend fhe funeral of an un¬ cle, John (Poiney) Patney, sched¬ uled for fomorrow morning from the Mikelski Funeral Home in Plains.
Phoned frnm Pittsburgh At  1  P. M , .Serseant Mikelski
John C. Chapman, a youthful ___^g00d. |i'y were loavinR Pittsburch. The
Not   until   the   body  of  Mrs.  Mahon  was  on   the iwill be made next week. by a Je.suit priest in the chapel
undertaker's slab was it even known that lier life had    Hagerty   said   the   President °L''°,Pf':^''??",^"'-
been taken bv something aside from natural causes.     Iprobably will end his long week- Aii  r'l..-^ rt>'<,«.«....,i lend on the farm and return to
All Clues Destroyed u„„„ithe White House late tomorrow
And  by  that  time  the  murder  scene  had  been ^^^ early Tuesday, "cleaned up." . . . Made nice and neat and every clue    ..j ju,t ^^^i know," ht re- destroyed, plied to a newsman's question on
Another case that was wiped out bv a curious|the possibility of foul play in public before trained personnel could evaluate the evi-^°^"n«^^t'°"..^;'|| the^^ock^ ex- dence was that of Margaret Martin of Kingston, whol,,,,jt for the full report." j
was found murdered in the middle 1930s near Vosburgl   He   indicated   tht   President on the Wyoming-Luzerne County line. I does not share the strong mis-|
Tire and shoe tracks in the snow might have pro-:givings  voiced  by  some  con-| vided   a   clue   to   the   murderer,   but   by   the   time g^".^'"*" . «»°"t   '^e   Pub^^^^^^^ ,,     .,. -11 J. I    1    1 i 1  J iu   build-up given the embarrassing-
authorities arrived dozens of people had trampled the ly  unsuccessful  rocket  launch-^ area and blotted out any hope of obtaining a lead.       ing. '.
Like the Martin case the investigation of the Serhan He pointed out, as an expres-i case got off on the wrong foot and limped the rest of's'on of his own opinion,  thatj
Eight cardinals and 50 bishops f.^eet   meta    worker   who   noW|
and  prelates  attended  the four li^es  m   Baltimore,   and  Luther|_- |#"|| I
times daily  exercises  with  the C^.Hfgis, 32 of Knoxville, iden-'¦¦ ^-« || |||nrl
Pope during the past week. The t'/'ed Smith from pictures <>» °"f {|lll^l|l II |||M||
»v^.i.-.   lr,.,-wi^  th-   .Hv»„t!of   three   men   they   saw   in   •l|||(||| |l|||UU|
exercises,   marking   the   advent| or   inree   men   they season, consist mainly of prayer Cadillac near the store and meditation.
the way.
What Report Showed
Here's a good example based on the report of a trained investigator:
"Interview was had with Detective Frank Kreig at the Wilkes-Barre police headquarters. He advi.sed that he arrived at the scene of the crime at approxi¬ mately 11 A. M., Sunday, April 7, 1957. He advi.sed that inasmuch as he had just been appointed a detective after having served several years as a traffic policeman for the department, he was not qualified to conduct a murder investigation. Consequently, he more or less took the position of an observer.
"Most of the details of the investigation were handled by County Detectives Gabrysh and Flynn and City Detective Schwab. He recalled that there were enough people present at the scene to 'have a ball.' He •further stated that the State Troopers Fisher and Pizzo did not find a single fingerprint on the premi.ses. He further advised that scrapings from under the victim's fingernails were not taken He recalled that the light was on in the room where the body was found, but that he did not know whether it was on when he arrived or whether it was put on later. With regard to the hatchet, he advLsed that the only one who was definitely sure
many of the people and some of the organizations that are criticizing" the open publicity given the test "are the same ones that earlier insisted more information be given."
The President took time out from his schedule of indoor rest and painting today to proclaim! Dec. 10 as United Nations Hu-j man Rights Day. He called on all Americans to "reaffirm ourj faith in the individual" andl "strengthen and defend the bless-l ings of liberty for this genera¬ tion and for generationi to come."
Workers Seize 3 Dutch Banks
Valley Scenes
Huxhnnd following wife on thopping spree being stabbed by woman's vnihrellfi, and sail¬ ing. "Okaii, I give up, yon got me!"
Little three-year-old with devilish sense of hutnor an¬ swering phone and telling ministry, "\o, i/ou can't talk to my monimii because she's across the $tr«et having a beer."
Thret diners enjoying for¬ mal atmosphere of local res¬ taurant sitting at table with phony "Arrow - through - the- head" type headgear on. Wl got top service from waitress¬ es if only due to curiosity.
Wife Hurt On Rt 11
Gordon LaRock, 43, Fatally Injured At Hunlock Creek
Committee Chairman Inhn L. McClellan (D., Ark) criticized Knoxville police for laxity in handling fhe still-unsolved dyna¬ miting case.
Powers, a middle-aged, while- haired man who has been in the grocery business for .'12 years, said he reported Reynolds' threat to police. MrClellan brought oul that the union official never was questioned, and Powers said no arrests have been made
"That's the kind of law en¬ forcement you have in that com¬ munity" when labor matters are involved, McClellan said in dis¬ gust. /
Chapman and Hargis also saidj ,      ,     ,      •
they identified .Smith to police A New York busine.ss-i as having been at the scene of man    vvas    killed   and   his
:the blast ..,„„ wife and .son injured, one
Reynolds    and    Smith    were , ,        .1 „•,.     ,,„
linked in testimony before the seriously, when tlieir auto- committee Friday as alleged par-mobile left Route 11 and ticipants    in    other    Teamsterlwas  demolished   in  a  colli-
.    .       familv travelled to within about
Doubts    and    pessimism 1,50 miles of Harrisburg on tht
mounted    as    tho   time   of fop-shrouded    and    wet    super-
the  Dec.   I(vl8  mooting in Jl'Rhway   wlien   the   fatal   acci-
Paris drew near. I''^"   occurred.
State Police at Somerset con- The American satellite fiasco tacted troopers at Wyoming at Cape Canaveral, Fla., Friday Barracks immediately afterward! dealt a heavy blow to United to notify the Mikelski family in States prestige and leadership in Plains that infant Susan had Britain and was expected to died. Shortly afterwards word weiKh heavily on the Paris talks, was received that Mrs. Mikelski
Amonp the other reasons for died from injuries British  possimism  were The    State    Police    requested
The Anglo-American quarrel    members of the Mikelski family
lUnion violence.
JAKARTA, Indo- nesia (IP) — Indonesian bank  employees  seized
that the hatchet had been in the store atthe time'of Sy'^'anf^'cI^l^Z^Vem^lh;
the victim sjdeath was Edmund, Serhan." "property of the republic of In-
His Job Was Impaired donesia."
At the same time it should be pointed out that, ^.^r'r.rre'^inS
Detective Captain Murray was almost as good as out of
business before he moved his forces on the Serhan case The majority of the members of the city de¬ tective force can trace their experience back through appointment to the bureau, traffic and beat duty and then elevation to detective because of politics.
houses immediately after the tak*-over committee ran up the red and white Indonesian flag over the bank building and news of the seizure became known.
Witnesses said the depositor! flocked to the downtown "Dja kaka Kota" district
2 to 4 Inches of Snow Is Expected Here Today
A snowstorm of fairly good size is expected to hit the region today, with a possible accumulation of two to four inches by aftemoon, according to the U. S. Weather Bureau at Avoca Airport.
Meteorologist Earl Sibert predicted occasional snow flurries in the morning, changing to general snow by late morning or early aftemoon, ending by late Sunday night. The temperature is expected to drop to the mid-twenties Sunday night.
Yesterday's rain and mild weather was unseasonal, Sibert commented. The day's low temperature was .36 and the high, .51, for an average temperature of 44 or 1.3 degrees above the normal 31 degrees. Local rainfall, aince Friday, measured ..32 of an inch.
Considerable cloudines! and continued cold weather is anticipated for Monday, together with occasional snow flurries.    The high expected tomorrow is 30 to 35 degree*.
INSIDE THE INDEPENDENT
sion '^ith  a tractor-trailer truck   parked   at   the   Clif Smith     Garage,     Hunlock Creek, last night at ^. Gordon J-aRock,  43,  a  res¬ taurant owner, 8.57 West Main St.,   Watertown,   N.   Y.,   was pronounced   dead   on   arrival at   Nanticoke   State   llnspilal at .5:26 bv Dr. Robert Babskie. His wife, Dorothy, 39,  was admitted to the same hospital with injuries to the head and neck,  abrasions  of  Che  knee, left thigh bruises and injuries to  the  left  elbow.    Her  con¬ dition  was listed as "fair."
The son, Michael, eipht, suf¬ fered injuries to the fare and mouth and, according to attaches of the hospital, was in "serious" condition last night. Fell Asleep at Wheel According to Troopers Nevin
with France over shipments nf arms lo Tunisia, which France angrily opposed.
A British dispute with West Germanv over support pav- monts for the 60,000 British troops stationed in the coun¬ try.  }
French suspicions Ihat the United States and Britain seek to "dominate" the NATO alliance to the detriment nf France and the smaller mem¬ ber nations.
The boost to Soviet prowess and the consequent lessening of American prestige by the Soviet  Sputnik   launchings.
Unhappiness among many of the smaller NATO nations over U. S. plans tn set up a chain of rocket bases on their territories.
to journey to Somerset to pick up the two small boys who ap¬ parently were uninjured. Belief was expressed that they were riding in the rear seat, while fhe sergeant, his wife and daughter were in fhe front seat.
Immediately after being noti¬ fied, Mr and Mrs. Mikelski Sr. left their Plains n>sidence for Somerset They were accom¬ panied by a neighbor. Isaac Thomas, of 10 Wyoming St. The Mikelskis' were unaware that their daiighterin-law had died when they left here for Somer¬ set.
Sergeant Mikel.ski. a graduate of Plains Township High .School, Class of 1947, entered the Army shortly after receiving his di¬ ploma and was sent to Crermany where he served three years. There he met  and  marned tht
former Judith Stigler seven I The British press stressed years ago. Their first chiid, ;these points m editorials ques- Michael, was born before tht jtioning the chance of a success- familv established residence at I ful conference. [Fort  Knox,   Ky ,  after  the •«••
Said the Daily Telegraph: ". .. geant was rotated home. The American administration The infant, besides her rould hardiv be in a worse posi- brothers, father, and paternal tion to take bold initiatives or grandparents, is survived by • to lead the free world boldly out maternal grandmother, Mr!. of the present shadows " Cecelia Stigler, Oermany.
If Your Child Writes Santa, Don't Be Surprised by Answer
nd
Section Page
r)ne member—Detective Doug Bart—has had the
Amusement Four
one of the Around the Town... Thret
oldest parts of the former colo-i Better English Two
nial  capital,  to  withdraw   their'City Hall News Five
bpnofif nf or\o/.;oi;,o,^ tdt" *•„.,•„""''       ^ -    ..-.^ ......  ".v-^Qn^y   The employees commit-Classified Six
nenetitot specialized FBI training and the private in-,tee reportedly planned steps to County News Fivt
vestigalors  report has  this to say: restrict withdrawals. iCrossword Puzzle...Six
"Interviews were had with  Detectives Bart and    Dutch officials in Amsterdam Drew Pearson .Three
Schwab   of   the   Wilke.s-Barro   Police   Denartment   hut ^"^   ""*5'*^   '°   estimate   thelEditonal Three
neithercoiilHarlrlanvinf^.rLai;      V    !    f    I      J    •    """^ amount   of   monev   under   theiFrank Tripp Thret
neiifter could add an.v informaii.ni to that already incor- banks' control *t tht moment of,House Doctor Six
(Continued on PpjriB 2. Sec 1) i««izur«. ^'Homt of tht Week.. Six
9 How Can I ? ? ? Thret
7 Indoor Gardening.. Four 10 Look and Leam One
6 Obituary One
1-5 Politics Three
7 Robert C. Ruark.... Three
5 State Capital Five
^ State Newi..' Five
7 Sports Three
2 TV and Radio Four
2i Womtn'i Section... Four
Shickshinny Sute Police, Mr. LaRock was operating a 19.57 sedan south on the highway, to¬ ward Shickshinny, when he fell Section Paee'asleep at the wheel. The vehicle
WASHINGTON (IP—If your Hamor  and  Jphn   Holowlakpf   child writes Santa Claus and
receives a reply, don't be sur¬ prised. It happens all the time.
The sentimental chore is most frequently taken on by a n overworked postmaster who is anxious to reaffirm a child's faith In Santa Claus. Postal officials endorse this. They are against disillusion¬ ing a youngster and make sure, at least, that his scrawted letter Is never sent back marked  "address  unknown."
Many timet tht letters art
11 crossed to the other side of the 4 highway   where   it   struck   fhe
12 parked tractor-trailer truck with 8 such force that it drove it eight
6 or nine feet back    The tractor-
7 trailer truck carried a  load  of 10 automobiles. ] 1     The wife and son were also
, , I sleeping at the time of the acci¬ dent, the wife on the rear seat )') 11 and the child in tht front of the; 1-8 car.
answered—by a postmaster imbued with the Christma! spirit. Such a man is H. H. Hassell, postmaster at nearby Rockville. Md. He said he be¬ gan answering Santa letter* after he .saw how thrilled hi! own little girl was when sht received a letter from tht Santa's North Pole head¬ quarters.
Some of Has-sell's aides also have caught the spirit. A college youth who works in the Rockville post office dur¬ ing the Christmas season re¬ cently replied to a letter from David Capka. not quite fivt years old  0/ RockvUlt.