Joe O’Connor
Joe O’Connor
JOSEPH V. “JOE” O’CONNOR aka Joseph Connors was born in Pennsylvania around 1902 to Michael and Della O’Connor. His parents were both born in Ireland, Michael O’Connor coming to the United States in 1894, Della in 1900. Joe O’Connor was the oldest of at least five children, coming before John, Raymond, Mary, and Francis. The family moved to Gloucester City around 1906. The O’Connor family was residing at 825 Market Street in 1910. By 1914 they had moved to South Camden.
The 1914 City Directory shows the family at 1037 Locust Street in Camden. When father Michael O’Connor registered for the draft in September of 1918 the family was living at 241 Mount Vernon Street. By January of 1920 the O’Connors had moved to 125 Broadway in Gloucester City, New Jersey. Michael O’Connor supported his family during the late 1910s and early 1920s by working as a foreman, at a cold storage facility in Philadelphia, and by 1930 at the Welsbach Gas Mantle factory in Gloucester City. By 1920 both Joe and John O’Connor were working as shipfitters in one of the nearby shipyards.
Working in the shipyards was Joe O’Connor’s idea of how to make a living, and he soon found other ways to do business. In April of 1929 Joe O’Connor was shot and seriously wounded by John Doris, who, despite O’Connor’s refusal to testify against him, was convicted and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for this crime.
By April of 1930 only Joe, his brother Raymond and sister Mary still were living at home. The 1930 Census states that two brothers were ostensibly iron workers, but it appears that Joe O’Connor was still earning his money in other ways. He married some time after the April 1930 Census and moved to 520 Walnut Street in Camden.
Joe O’Connor and his wife Louise were still living at 520 Walnut Street in Camden when he was again shot, this time while walking near South 5th Street and Walnut Street, on November 13, 1930. He died as a result of this shooting on November 25, 1930.
Gangster Shot as Racketeers Open War Here
Camden Courier-Post —
Gloucester Man Near Death After Attack at Broadway and Kaighn Avenue
FELLED NEAR QUARTERS OF CAMDEN GAMBLERS
Brother of Frank Doris Accused After Police Round Up 10 Men
In Gang Shooting
JOHN DORIS
Brother of Frank Doris, who was electrocuted for murder in connection with the Olney Bank robbery. John Doris is under arrest for shooting an alleged racketeer here yesterday.
Shooting of an alleged racketeer at Broadway and Kaighn avenue, near the threshold of one of South Jersey’s notorious reputed gambling joints, threw Camden police into renewed warfare on gangdom yesterday.
Like the shots that riddled Hughy McLoon, the dwarfed Philadelphia hunchback—shots that blew off the lid off Philadelphia vice and police corruption—those that echoed in the recognized rendezvous of Camden gangdom promised to have far-reaching effects.
The victim was Joseph Connors, 28, of 135 North Broadway, Gloucester, alleged beer racketeer. With a bullet in his lungs and another in his abdomen, he was conceded “an even chance” to live at West Jersey Homeopathic Hospital last night
John Doris, 24, brother of Frank Doris, who died in the electric chair for murder during the Olney Bank holdup is under arrest charged with the shooting.
A roundup by a special squad of detectives immediately following the shooting resulted in the arrest of 10 men, among them some well-known gangsters and racketeers. All were held in bail as material witnesses.
Those netted in the roundup and the bail demanded follow:
Russell Sage, 426 Mechanic street, several times suspected in Camden gang shootings, held without bail for trying to help Doris escape; James “Jimmie” Toland, former Philadelphia pugilist and now operator of the Nonpariel Club, $2500 bail; Joseph Simms, cook in the Nonpariel Club, $500 bail; Charles Riehm, 1051 Haddon avenue, manager of the club; William Kelly, alias Leo Morton, 425 Van Hook street, $500; Harry Selah, 1240 South Third street, a spectator who named Doris as the assailant, $500; William J. Merrick, 1128 Liberty street, $2500; Lorenzo Cole, 920 Jefferson avenue, $500; Ernest Matsius, 506 Kaighn avenue, $500; Leo McKenna, 426 Mt. Vernon street, $500.
Motive in Doubt
Motive for the shooting was so tangled in the mazes of gangland’s intrigues of love, avarice and rivalry that police confessed they were unable to fathom it. Gangland’s glib explanation was that Doris and Connors quarreled over change for a $5 bill in the Nonpariel Club, Second and Kaighn avenue several hours before the shooting.
The shooting took place in front of the American Restaurant, 506 Kaighn avenue after the two men had engaged in a bitter quarrel at a table inside. Other patrons saw both arise and punch viciously. Doris suffered severe cuts on the face in the exchange. Then the fighters walked out to the street to finish the battle.
But as Connors raised his hands, the other pulled a pistol and began firing at point-blank range. Connors screamed and ran back toward the restaurant with Doris, the pistol still in readiness, in pursuit.
Shot Shatters Pane
Three shots were fired. One crashed through a window of the United Shoe Repair Shop on the opposite side of the street at 505 Kaighn avenue.
In his haste to escape, Connors lunged through the glass panel of the restaurant door, cutting his hands and face.
The wounded man ran through the kitchen into Amber street at the rear. Doris pursued him as far as Broadway, but turned from the chase when a group of pedestrians ran toward him. Connors collapsed near the corner as he cried “Get the wagon. I’m shot.”
Sage, the suspect denied bail, tried to put the fugitive board [sic] a Philadelphia-Pitman bus, police said, but the driver refused to take him as passenger because he said he was not permitted to make stops in Gloucester, where Sage asked the driver to discharge Doris.
Meanwhile available detectives and patrolmen were hurried to the scene. When the search ended Doris had been in a cell in Camden police headquarters several hours as a “drunk.”
Picked Up as Drunk
He was “sent in” by Policeman Joseph Leonhardt after telling an incoherent story of “bumping off a guy.” Leonhardt sized him up as helplessly drunk and arrested him near the Nonpareil Club less than 30 minutes after the shooting.
It was not until later, when Doris’ friends, a woman among them, called police headquarters for news of him. All asked for him by his right name except the woman. She asked first for Doris and then for “John King.” This was the alias Doris gave when “slated.” He was questioned in his cell by Detective Sergeant Samuel Johnson, but it was not until he actually was identified as the assailant that police were certain they had the right man.
As Detectives Koerner, Cheesman, Carpani, McGrath and Troncone continued to bring suspects into headquarters for questioning, Selah, one of those arrested near the scene of the shooting, was asked as a detective pointed to Doris:
“Is that the man?”
Selah nodded.
Doris Record Bad
Doris has a criminal record that dates back to his school days. Once, Judge James E. Gorman, Philadelphia, told him he was headed for the electric chair—an end that looms as a distinct possibility. Doris also was suspected in the murder of Joseph (Mose) Flannery, in Kaighn avenue, between Front and Second streets, a few doors from the Nonpareil Club.
So far as Camden authorities were able to determine last night, Connors has no police record. He has been linked, they said, to a beer racket and is known as a frequenter of gambling joints, police said, but local records show no mark against him.
Machine Gun Holds Mystery
Two mysterious elements stand out to further baffle scrutiny of the motives behind the shooting. One is the sudden closing of two South Camden gambling joints—one in a second floor room in Broadway, below Kaighn avenue and the other at Tenth street and Kaighn avenue. These places, both operating at full blast, closed their doors on Friday without an explanation that could be reconciled with the circumstances.
The other mysterious touch to yesterday’s affair was an apparently well-authenticated report that police arrested a man in a car with a machine gun. Efforts to learn the identity of this man were fruitless.
Speculation concerning the closing of the gambling houses jumped from rumors of a war of rival gamblers, to warnings of a holdup or of a police raid. Paraphernalia was removed from both places and sentries posted to spread discreet warnings for patrons to keep away. The place at Tenth street and Kaighn avenue was closed by police three months ago. Its reopening was unexplained.
The shooting spurred police officials to what Chief Lewis Stehr declared would be a wholesale cleanup of South Camden’s hangouts, and gaming dens.
“Orders went out three months ago,” said Stehr “to clamp on the lid. We have been working hard to keep it on. This shooting may have no significance in itself, but it stresses the need to wipe out the practice of carrying weapons.”
Extra details of plain clothesmen were on duty in the Kaighn avenue district last night, Stehr announced.
Supreme Court Justice Frank T. Lloyd, Merchantville, recently appointed to serve the district including Camden, declared he intends to review the facts in yesterday’s shooting to determine if his intervention in alleged Camden racketeering is warranted.
Justice Lloyd’s charge to the April grand jury demanding a curb on the carrying of firearms and asking a campaign to curb the influx of Philadelphia criminals into South Jersey, caused widespread anticipation of a general review of vice conditions here.
Commissioner David S. Boone, director of public safety, said the police department “has its hands full” in attempting to execute orders for a cleanup he issued some months ago.
He declared he issued special orders yesterday to Chief Stehr as a result of the most recent shooting. But he declined to disclose their purport.
The shooting was subject of a lengthy conference of the county’s law-enforcement officers in the prosecutor’s office. Lawrence T. Doran, chief of county detectives and Rocco Palese, assistant prosecutor, refused to comment on the possible effect the shooting might have on demands for a review of conditions here.
Doran, who entered the investigation on orders of the prosecutor’s office, attempted unsuccessfully to induce the wounded man to name his assailant. He permitted Connors’ brother, Raymond, to see Joseph, hoping that the brother would aid him.
Instead, Raymond walked to his brother’s side and whispered:
“Don’t say a word. Keep your mouth shut.”
Doran arrested him immediately as a material witness.
Scene of Shooting That Renewed War on Gangdom
—Courier-Post Photo
This diagram shows where John Doris shot down Joseph Connors, alleged racketeer, in a mysterious feud of Camden’s underworld. Doris, gunman, gangster and racketeer, shot his foeman at point-blank range. The dotted line shows how the victim ran for his life into the American Restaurant, 506 Kaighn avenue, with the gunman in pursuit.
Shooting May End in Murder Charge
Trenton Evening Times —
(United Press)
CAMDEN, N. J., April 29.—John Doris, 24, was held today on the charge of shooting John O’Connor, 28, of Gloucester City.
If O’Connor dies, the Prosecutor said Doris would be charged with murder. Doris’ brother, Frank, was executed several years ago for complicity in a murder committed during the Olney bank robbery.
Police said the shooting occurred during an argument over a woman and a $4 liquor bill.
Brother Follows Killer’s Footsteps; Held for Shooting
Albany Evening Journal —
CAMDEN, N. J., April 29 (UP).—Slipping down the same path of crime that led his brother to the electric chair, John Doris, twenty-four, today was held for shooting an underworld character.
The prosecutor declared that if the man shot, John O’Connor, twenty-eight, Gloucester City, died, a murder charge will be preferred against Doris. Doris is a brother of Frank Doris, who was electrocuted for his part in the Olney bank robbery some years ago. Both had criminal records as youths and has [sic] long been known as underworld characters, police said.
Police understood the shooting was over a woman or a $4 liquor bill.
Gang War Figure
Camden Courier-Post —
Gang War Figure
Action Delayed in Gang Shooting
Camden Courier-Post —
Shooting Witness
MRS. ROSE GIBBS
Who is held as material witness in shooting of Joseph Connors Sunday night near Broadway and Kaighn avenue.
Indictment of Doris in Flannery Murder Revealed After Arrest
Assistant Prosecutor Rocco Palese was prepared last night to go to the bottom of all charges against John Doris, brother of an executed Philadelphia bandit murderer, in an effort to determine whether to press for his immediate trial on indictments accusing him of the killing of Joseph (Mose) Flannery, or to seek other indictments first on charges of shooting Joseph Connors, at 6 a. m. Sunday.
The condition of Connors, a reputed Gloucester racketeer, remained the same last night in West Jersey Homeopathic Hospital, where doctors said the crisis was not yet passed. He has bullet wounds in the lung, abdomen and the hand, physicians saying it was too soon to predict whether he had a chance for recovery.
Doris Arraigned
Doris was arraigned before Police Judge Pancoast yesterday charged with shooting Connors near Broadway and Kaighn avenue, after a brawl which took them into two resorts and finally ended on the street outside. The judge held him for grand jury action on that charge, and was about to close the case when City Detective J. Wesley McGrath took the stand and revealed that Doris was wanted in the mysterious murder of “Mose” Flannery, Camden racketeer, seven months ago at Front street and Kaighn avenue. Pancoast promptly denied him bail.
Records at the prosecutor’s office disclosed Doris was indicted secretly by the grand jury two days after the killing of Flannery, September 20, 1928. The indictment was kept secret when it was learned Doris had disappeared and Judge Shay automatically ordered the indictment impounded against a fugitive.
Palese Studies Case
The Flannery case was placed before the grand jury by former Assistant Prosecutor Samuel P. Orlando, who left his notes with the indictment in the office when he relinquished his post to Palese.
“I will study the case tomorrow,” Palese said last night. “Until I do, and can learn the strength of the old case against Doris in the Flannery murder, I can’t say which charge I might take before a jury, provided, of course, that we can get an indictment in the Connors case against the youth.”
Connors, who is 28, lives at 135 North Broadway, Gloucester. He has been arrested twice, once in Gloucester for disorderly conduct in 1924, and later on a grand larceny charge, on which he was acquitted.
Doris is a brother of the late Frankie Doris, who with three other youths went to the electric chair for the murder of a policeman in the famous Olney Bank robbery in Philadelphia. The man held here was tried and acquitted of another murder charge in Philadelphia, at which time the trial judge predicted that he, too, would die in the chair.
A detainer warrant asking that Doris be held for the Philadelphia police was received by Chief County Detective Lawrence T. Doran, in the afternoon. According to the detainer, Doris is wanted in “the State of Pennsylvania” on charges of being a fugitive from justice; carrying concealed deadly weapons, and attempting to kill. No amplification of the charges is made in the warrant which was turned over to Warden Edward Powell of the county jail.
Doris pleaded not guilty to charges of atrocious assault and battery with intent to kill and carrying a concealed deadly weapon, before he was held for the grand jury.
A few minutes before Doris was arraigned yesterday, Mrs. Rose Gibbs, 18, of 411 Henry street, was arraigned as a material witness in the shooting. She repeated the story that she told detectives, in which she said Connors accused Doris of stealing her pocketbook, and an argument ensued. She was held in $500 bail as a material witness.
It was revealed that 12 men were arraigned before Judge Pancoast at a special hearing on Sunday and held as material witnesses in the shooting. Included among these were Connors’ brother and Russell Sage, who was also held as a material witness in two other Camden gang shootings, one of which was the Flannery case.
Mrs. Gibbs declared that she, Connors and Eli Conaghy, 28, of 814 South Sixth st., were at a party in the 2200 block on Broadway, and went to the Nonpareil Club, Second street and Kaighn avenue. There they met Doris and Sage. Mrs. Gibbs said she suddenly missed her pocketbook, which contained $4, and she told Connors, who accused Doris of taking it. An altercation between the two men started, and all five left the club. Mrs. Gibbs said she parted from the men outside. The men went into a restaurant, came out later, and the shooting followed.
Doris has a long criminal record, though but two minor convictions rest against him. Police dockets show him arrested as follows: January 7, 1925, arrested tried and acquitted in the murder of Joseph Rika, Philadelphia; December 12, 1925, arrested for larceny of automobile, dismissed; August 23, 1926, arrested for gambling, fined $13.50; September 11, 1926, gambling on the highway, dismissed; January 9, 1927, arrested as suspicious character, dismissed; April 9, 1927, arrested for disorderly conduct, sentenced to ten days; February 26, 1928, arrested for carrying concealed deadly weapon, and aggravated assault and battery, and was found not guilty; February 26, 1929, arrested and found not guilty of assault and battery and carrying a weapon.
Connors was arrested but twice, as far as police can learn. Once he was arrested in Gloucester on a disorderly conduct charge, while in 1924, he was tried on a charge of grand larceny, and was acquitted.
Sage was held as a material witness in the fatal shooting of Joseph Gannon, Philadelphia, in the Sixth Ward Republican Club, for which Joseph “Polack Joe” Devon received a state prison sentence, and in the murder of Flannery. He was arrested June 3, 1919, on a charge of larceny of a car on complaint of Margaret Chapman, 410 Federal street.
Doris Indictment Studied by Police
Camden Courier-Post —
Begins Probe of Flannery Case Records; May Press Connors Charge First
Assistant Prosecutor Rocco Palese yesterday began to prepare his office to take John Doris to a quick trial for the murder of Joseph “Mose” Flannery.
Although uncertain whether to try Doris immediately on the Flannery murder indictment, or to seek an indictment first on charges of shooting Joseph Connors, alleged Gloucester racketeer, at Broadway and Kaighn avenue early Sunday, Palese decided to learn the full strength of the old case against Doris. Connors, 28, appeared on the road to recovery last night, doctors in West Jersey Homeopathic Hospital said.
The Flannery indictment, handed up by the grand jury two days after the killing last September 18, reached Palese from the former regime in the prosecutor’s office. He filed a detainer against Doris as soon as he received a certified copy of the old indictment yesterday. Doris, brother of one of the four executed Olney Bank bandits, is in jail on the Connors charges.
To be certain he would be prepared for either case, Palese also questioned several witnesses who had appeared before the grand jury on the Flannery case. He also said the present grand jury might reopen the Flannery case.
Connors Refuses to Name Assailant in Shooting at Club
Camden Courier-Post —
Fails to Identify Doris, Held on Atempted [sic] Murder Charge, After Brawl Over Girl
VICTIM LEAVES HOSPITAL
Clinging to gangland tradition, Joseph Connors, 28, Gloucester, yesterday refused to tell who attempted to murder him at 6 a. m. April 28.
Connors was discharged from West Jersey Homeopathic Hospital yesterday, a shadow of his former self. He was taken to police headquarters and later arraigned before Police Judge Pancoast, who held him without bail.
After the hearing, Connors was quizzed by Assistant Prosecutor Palese and county detectives. He was brought face to face with John Doris, who, witnesses say, wounded him in a brawl over a girl on Broadway near Kaighn avenue.
Fails to Identify Doris
“I cannot identify him as the man who shot me,” was his laconic reply to a question from Palese.
Still suffering from bullet wounds through the lungs, abdomen and hand, he sat pale and seemingly disinterested as the detectives tried to get him to talk.
Prosecutor Galdwin [sic] ordered him held in $1500 bail as a material witness. He furnished bond and was permitted to go home.
Brother of Olney Bandit
Doris, who was a brother of the late Frank Doris, one of the four Olney bank bandits who went to the electric chair for killing a Philadelphia policeman, is also unuder [sic] indictment for the murder of Joseph (Mose) Flannery, who was shot in front of a saloon near Front street and Kaighn avenue last September.
About a dozen witnesses are either in jail or out on bail. According to the investigators, several have identified Doris as the man who shot Connors in a quarrel over a girl losing $4 while attending a party. She is Mrs. Rose Gibbs, 18, of 411 Henry street. She said she went home before the shooting and found the missing money.
Precautions Taken to Prevent Outbreak by Gangdom Friends
Camden Courier-Post —
Spectators to Be Barred at Hearing Thursday; Gunman Denounced by Justice
JUDGE DENIES FREEDOM
Precautions are being taken by Prosecutor Clifford A. Baldwin to prevent any gangster demonstration Thursday when John Doris, alleged racketeer, goes on trial in Criminal Court on a charge of shooting Joseph Connors, 28, Gloucester, April 28 near Broadway and Kaighn avenue.
The prosecutor said no one will be admitted to the court room without first showing a subpena unless they are court officials, attorneys or newspapermen. He said the court room will be guarded heavily during the trial.
“We are not going to take any chances on Doris,” Baldwin said. “We do not know that Philadelphia gangsters will attempt anything here, but are going to be on guard.”
Doris recently was brought before Supreme Court Justice Lloyd by two constables but not handcuffed. Justice Lloyd branded Doris as a desperate character and ordered him taken from his presence until he could be handcuffed. At that time Doris asked for release on a writ of habeas corpus but the court refused.
The gangster also has been indicted in connection with the murder of Joseph (Mose) Flannery last Fall at Front street and Kaighn avenue. This indictment was disclosed after his arrest in the Connors’ case.
He will go on trial Thursday on a charge of atrocious assault and battery with intent to kill Connors. Connors was in West Jersey Homeopathic Hospital several weeks. When he was released he refused to identify Doris as his assailant. It is alleged the two quarreled over a woman.
Doris is a brother of Frank Doris, one of four bandits executed for the murder of a policeman in the Olney Bank robbery in Philadelphia two years ago. Doris has been living at Front and York streets since the murder of Flannery.
Woman Missing as Doris Trial Is Opened Here
Camden Courier-Post —
WOMAN MISSING AS DORIS TRIAL IS OPENED HERE
Key Witness in Cafe Shooting Fails to Appear; Jury Selected
ONLY THREE ARE MEN; PRISONER PICKS THEM
Police on Guard to Block Any Attempt to Free Gangster
A key witness in the shooting of Joseph Connors, of Gloucester, by John Doris, Philadelphia gangster, Mrs. Rose Gibbs, 18, of 411 Henry street, failed to answer her name when called during the trial of Doris today in Criminal Court.
Mrs. Gibbs had been held in $500 bail as a material witness. Her bondsman, Abraham Lutz, was ordered by Judge Shay to produce her this afternoon in lieu of forfeiture of bail.
It was Mrs. Gibbs, according to police, who recounted details of an argument between Connors and Doris, after her pocketbook was missing, while the three and Eli Conaghy, 28, of 818 South Sixth street, were at a party in the 2200 Block on Broadway on the morning of April 28 when Connors was wounded.
The trial of Doris opened shortly before noon before Judge Shay and a jury comprised of nine women and three men whom Doris had virtually selected single-handed.
Doctor Is Called
Doris is charged with atrocious assault and battery with intent to kill Connors, and also is charged with carrying concealed deadly weapons, to wit, a loaded revolver.
The first witness called by Assistant Prosecutor Rocco Palese, representing the state, was Dr. Ralph Warwick, an interns in West Jersey Homeopathic Hospital. Walter S. Keown and William King are representing Doris.
Dr. Warwick testified Connors was admitted to the hospital, suffering from bullet wounds, at 7.45 a. m., April 28, and was discharged on May 15.
Patrolman Joseph Lenhardt testified he heard a disturbance and saw a man trying to break into the Nonpareil Club, Second street and Kaighn avenue, the morning of the shooting. The man was bleeding from the head, and there was blood on his coat and shirt, Lenhardt said.
John B. Toland, 1043 Haddon avenue, caretaker of the club, said he was awakened and recognized Doris as the man trying to enter the place. He said Doris threatened him when warned to leave.
Dr. Warwick testified Connors was admitted to the hospital, suffering from bullet wounds, at 7.45 a. m., April 28, and was discharged on May 15.
Patrolman Joseph Lenhardt testified he heard a disturbance and saw a man trying to break into the Nonpareil Club, Second street and Kaighn avenue, the morning of the shooting. The man was bleeding from the head, and there was blood on his coat and shirt, Lenhardt said.
John B. Toland, 1043 Haddon avenue, caretaker of the club, said he was awakened and recognized Doris as the man trying to enter the place. He said Doris threatened him when warned to leave.
(Continued on Page Three)
Woman is Missing at Trial of Doris
(Continued from Page One)
Conaghy was the next witness. He told of entering a restaurant at Broadway and Kaighn avenue with Connors and Mrs. Gibbs. When he started to tell a different story than that which was revealed to the prosecutor’s office in a statement, Palese announced that the witness had “turned hostile to the state.” Palese quickly excused Conaghy and called Mrs. Gibbs.
There was no answer. It was at this point Judge Shay ordered the girl’s bondsman to have her in court not later than 1.30 p. m.
How Doris attempted to board a bus for Pitman after the shooting and how he was prevented by Russell Sage, a friend of Doris, was described by William Jones, of Barnesboro, driver for an independent bus line between Philadelphia and Pitman.
Court recessed at 12.30 for lunch.
Mrs. Lillie R. Kelton, a clerk, of 405 State street, Camden is foreman of the jury, selection of which took almost an hour, with Doris questioning each of the 29 veniremen called.
The spectators’ gallery was bare, however, more than a score of lawyers and law students were seated in the courtroom.
Besides Mrs. Kelton, the jury is composed of:—Bessie Kunitz, housewife, 926 Fern street; William Wescott, painter, 628 Walnut street; Bernice Branch, clerk, 722 Mt. Vernon street; Mrs. F. L. Barber, housewife, 204 Maple avenue, Merchantville; David Rolle, retired, 1047 North Twentieth street; Abbie Lewis, housewife, 119 North Thirty-sixth street; Mary Heake, housewife, 105 Kingston avenue, Barrington; Stella McGowan, housewife, 780 Walnut street; Catharine LeSage, housewife, Haddonfield; Michael Carrigan, Laurel Springs; Alva P. Joseph, 327 Harvard avenue, Collingswood.
Before the trial began, the jury was used to settle a “friendly” damage suit. After being out of the room 15 minutes, the jury returned and the Doris trial was opened, with Palese making his opening argument.
Palese outlined the shooting of Connors by Doris near Broadway and Kaighn avenue. It was the shooting that led the April grand jury into the investigation of vice and crime in Camden county.
John Doris is a brother of Frankie Doris, who participated in the Olney Bank robbery in Philadelphia nearly two years ago and in which a policeman was killed. Frankie Doris was electrocuted in the penitentiary at Bellfonte, Pa.
Several days ago Assistant Prosecutor Palese received a tip that a number of Philadelphia gangsters were coming to Camden to hear the trial. Prosecutor Baldwin then announced that during the trial only newspapermen and witnesses would be allowed in the courtroom.
Doris also is under indictment charged with the murder of “Mose” Flannery, in a saloon at Second and Kaighn avenue one year ago. While police searched the eastern United States for him in connection with the Flannery murder Doris was living with his mother at Second and State streets. When he was arrested in the Connors shooting he was recognized as the man long wanted in the Flannery murder.
On the night of the Connors shooting Doris and Russel Sage, his companion, were drinking in a night club at Second and Kaighn avenue. An argument started and Connors left and went to a restaurant on Kaighn avenue, east of Broadway.
The men met again there and a fight started. Doris is alleged to have drawn a revolver, chased Connors from the restaurant to the street and fired several shots. He was captured several hours later.
Gangland Is Blamed in Camden Shooting
Trenton Evening Times —
(Associated Press)
CAMDEN, N. J., Nov. 13.—Joseph O’Connor, 29, of this city, was shot and seriously wounded near his home at Fifth and Walnut Streets today. His assailant, who fired from an automobile, escaped. Police believe Philadelphia gangsters did the shooting as one of three cars that drove away from the vicinity bore Pennsylvania license tags.
This was the second attempt made on O’Connor’s life within 18 months. He is a brother-in-law of Albert Sandes, who is on trial charged with the murder of a sailor in a brawl here a year ago.
On April 28, 1929, O’Connor was shot in the abdomen and chest. John Doris, brother of Frank Doris, one of the executed Philadelphia Olney bank bandits, was convicted of the shooting and sentenced to 10 years in State Prison at Trenton, where he was stabbed to death by another convict in April of this year.
Gang Bullets Are Fatal to ‘Joe’ O’Connor
Camden Morning Post —
GANG BULLETS ARE FATAL TO ‘JOE’ O’CONNOR
Another Dead
South Camden Man Dies From Shooting on Street, Nov. 13
ARREST EXPECTED WITHIN FEW HOURS
Victim Adheres to Code Of Keeping Lips Sealed to End
Joseph O’Connor, “man about town,” is dead.
Critically wounded on the early morning of November 13, the man who police say “lived by his wits alone,” died on his cot in the West Jersey Homeopathic Hospital at 4.45 p. m. yesterday.
Police were spurred to renewed activity by the death of O’Connor. Detective Sylvester McGrath said an arrest would be made in a short time, possibly today.
It was rumored that a prominent South Camden “racket man” has been disclosed as the killer and police were searching for him. This could not be confirmed, however, when police were questioned.
Wide Search Instituted
A dragnet was thrown about the city and all district stations were notified to pick up anyone known to have been friendly with O’Connor with the idea of gaining additional information.
A search was also being made for the two men who took O’Connor to the hospital. It was learned police know the identity of one of these men.
Surrounded by his closest relatives and constantly watched by a police guard. O’Connor breathed his last abiding by the gangland code by which he is alleged to have lived.
He would not “squeal” on those who shot him down at Fifth and Walnut streets while he was on his way to his home “from somewhere.” In moments of consciousness he steadfastly refused to name his assailants.
O’Connor was in a delirious condition for more than 24 hours before his death and police would not disclose whether he had unwittingly divulged the names of his slayers. They admitted that several promising clues have been unearthed.
The shooting was the second time in 18 months that O’Connor had been put “on the spot.” He was seriously wounded April 28, 1929, at Broadway and Kaighn avenue by John Doris, notorious gangster. Doris was sentenced to ten years for that crime and subsequently was stabbed to death by a fellow convict at Trenton.
3 Cars in on Kill
As in the previous shooting affray O’Connor refused to tell police the names of those who ambushed him, thus abiding by the code of silence which fear of reprisal inspires.
O’Connor, who resides at 520 Walnut street, was enroute to his home on the morning of November 13 and was walking in Walnut street, near Fifth, at 3.30 a. m., when a volley of shots rang out. He was struck in the leg and stomach and lost a great amount of blood before his wounds were treated.
Witnesses saw three cars leave the vicinity immediately after the shots were heard. One of the machines bore a Pennsylvania license plate. One man was seen runing [sic] west on Walnut street and was picked up by one of the cars after he had traversed about a block. A short time later a stranger appeared at the hospital with O’Connor.
Delivers the Victim
“Take this man and fix him up,” the stranger told attendants. “I’m going and don’t try to stop me.”
Hospital attaches claim the stranger was a tall, thin man, apparently young. He wore a tan overcoat and light cap. When he left the hospital he entered an expensive sedan and was driven away by a second man who had remained at the wheel.
Police scouted the theory that O’Connor may have been slain by friends of Doris, seeking revenge.
Detective Sylvester McGrath asked O’Connor if the shooting had been done by any of Doris’ friends to which O’Connor replied:
“I didn’t squeal on Doris. I never said he shot me.”
Was Known to Police
O’Connor was the brother-in-law of Albert Saunders, who was recently acquitted on a charge of murdering Angelo Solury, a U. S. sailor, at the “Little Club,” a South Camden speakeasy, last June. O’Connor was in court during the first day of the trial.
“I don’t know if O’Connor was a racketeer,” said Detective Captain John Golden, “however, I do know that he didn’t work, so he must have lived by his wits.”
O’Connor had been arrested twice previous to being shot by Doris. He was arrested in Gloucester on a disorderly conduct charge, and in 1924 he was arrested on a grand larceny charge but acquitted.
O’Connor’s wife, Louise, his parents and a brother, Raymond, were at his bedside when he died.
Patrolman Russell Young who was on guard at the bedside said O’Connor was unconscious for an hour before death.
JOSEPH O’CONNOR
South Camden man died in hospital without violating gangland code of silence, and refused to tell who showered him with bullets on November 13.
O’Connor’s Slayer May Be Trapped by Delirium of Victim
Camden Morning Post —
Dead Man Reported to Have Dropped Hint in Muttering Before End Came
ARREST EXPECTED SOON
Joseph O’Connor’s loyalty to the code of gangland may have been in vain.
For police were more certain than ever last night that they would capture the murderer before many hours have passed.
Detective Sylvester McGrath informed newspaper men he was carrying a photo around with him of the man police believe “did the trick.”
He would not reveal the identity of the man whose photograph he has but did say he expected to arrest him shortly.
Both county and city police have been feverishly active in the O’Connor case since the death of the South Camden “man about town” on Tuesday.
O’Connor died at 4.45 p. m., in the West Jersey Homeopathic Hospital after having been shot down by unknown assailants in the early morning of November 13. He was on his way home when shot down at Fifth and Walnut streets.
For nearly two weeks the wounded man lay on a cot in the hospital without uttering one word that would give police a clue to his attackers. But he was delirious for 24 hours before his death and police would not diclose [sic] whether or not he had unwittingly dropped a clue as to the name of his slayer.
Whether the photograph that McGrath has is that of a prominent South Camden racketeer could not be learned.
A persistent rumor around the city links a recent inmate of the county jail in the slaying. The man is alleged to have been connected with the attempted jail breaks of Stephen McKiernan.
Police know the man’s name, but would not divulge it, and an order for his arrest has probably been issued to all policemen in the city and county.
Joseph O’Connor
Camden Morning Post —
JOSEPH O’CONNOR
Funeral services will be held tomorrow for Joseph O’Connor, Camden gangster who died Tuesday in West Jersey Homeopathic Hospital, after being shot in the hip by an unidentified gunman two weeks ago.
Services will take place at the home of his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Michael J. O’Connor, 135 North Broadway, Gloucester. Burial will be in New St. Mary’s Cemetery.
O’Connor is also survived by his widow, Louise, and a brother, Raymond.
Doris Brothers’ Pal Is Given Six Months
Camden Courier-Post —
James Trainer Jailed on Charge of Loitering With Intent to Steal
Found guilty of “loitering with intent to steal,” James Trainer, 31, was sentenced to six months in the county jail by Police Judge Garfield Pancoast today. Trainer pleaded not guilty and gave as his address the home of the Doris’ brothers mother [sic], Mrs. Emma McGovern, 132 York street.
Trainer had just left an automobile and started to enter the McGovern home at 3 a. m. yesterday when District Detectives Walter Smith and Alfred Shire arrested him on suspicion.
Mrs. McGovern said Trainer was a friend of her late sons, John and Frank Doris, both underworld figures, and that he occasionally had spent the night at her home. Trainer declared he had been living in the McGovern home for a year.
Frank Doris was one of the four Olney bandits executed several years ago. John Doris was mysteriously stabbed to death in state prison while serving a sentence for wounding Joey O’Connors [sic], man-about-town.
Trainer’s record, produced in police court today, showed 17 arrests and three convictions from 1917 to 1930. It showed that he had served sentences of three years, one year and 30 days. He was shown to have been arrested for larceny, robbery, breaking and entering, and as a suspicious character.
‘Buck’ Sage Held as ‘Hit-Runner’
Camden Courier-Post —
Detainer Lodged Against Sportsman in Shooting of Waterhouse
A detainer against Russell “Buck” Sage, held in Gloucester on a hit-run charge, was lodged last night by Camden police, who claim the South Camden sportsman “knows more than he has told” of the shooting of Harry “Gyp” Waterhouse.
Sage was arrested shortly after noon yesterday by Detective George Zeitz on a warrant issued by Police Recorder Oliver J. Stetser charging him with being the driver of an automobile which struck another machine in Gloucester early Thursday.
He will be given a hearing today. His arrest came a short time after he had appeared at Gloucester city hall and claimed ownership of an automobile which had been in a collision at 7 a. m. Thursday. Blood found in the car led the police to believe Waterhouse was taken to the hospital in it a short time before the accident.
Waterhouse staggered into the West Jersey Homeopathic Hospital Thursday morning and asked that his wounded leg be treated. Physicians said he had been drinking, but they opined much of his intoxicated manner was feigned. He was taken to police headquarters, but later was returned to the hospital when he could not walk upstairs to police court.
Sage was one of three friends of Waterhouse questioned about the shooting by Captain John Golden and Detective George Zeitz. The others were Raymond O’Connor, brother of the slain “Joey” O’Connor, and Harry Simon, brother of Patrolman Benjamin Simon. All professed ignorance of any details about the shooting, and were released. Later, Sage applied at Cooper hospital for treatment for a wrenched shoulder, which he said he received when he fell down a stairway.
Yesterday, however Sage went to Gloucester and claimed the car. It was alleged by the Gloucester police that the car struck another machine owned by John J. Bates, 2629 South Sartain street, Philadelphia, at Broadway and King street. According to the police, the driver of the car Sage claimed escaped.
Shortly after the accident the Gloucester police received a telephone call stating the car belonged to a Russell Shee, of Kaighn avenue near Fourth street, and had been stolen from Burlington and Essex streets, Gloucester.
However, the Gloucester police stated they have two witnesses who tentatively identified Sage as the driver of the hit-run car. Because the accident occurred not long after Waterhouse was taken to the hospital in a machine which immediately drove away, the police expressed belief it was Sage who took Waterhouse to the hospital and participated in the collision on his return trip.