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Rollie Waterhouse

Camden Resident

Rollie Waterhouse

Rollie Waterhouse

Rollie Waterhouse

ROLLIE WATERHOUSE was born Ralston J. Waterhouse on June 24, 1910 to Mr. and Mrs. Charles Waterhouse. His mother died before he was nine years of age. At the time of the 1920 Census the family lived at 511 Division Street in Camden.

His older sister Ellen had married Russell “Buck” Sage later that year, and a daughter, Rose, was born shortly thereafter. By 1930 the Sage household, at 436 Mechanic Street, included Rollie Waterhouse, his brother Alfonse, sister Thelma, and his father Charles and step-mother Waterhouse. Rollie Waterhouse was then 19, and working as a laborer at one of Camden’s many shipyards. Russell Sage had been arrested and questioned in a number of criminal investigations and it wasn’t long that young Rollie was in trouble too.

He was arrested for a November 21, 1930 robbery in Gloucester City, for which he was acquitted.

On October 21, 1936 Rollie Waterhouse was convicted along with two accomplices of the May 15, 1936 robbery of James Law in Gloucester City, and sentenced to a long term at the reformatory at Annandale NJ by Judge Frank F. Neutze.

After his release he came back to the area, and was living in Fairview in the late 1950s.

Last a resident of Vincentown NJ, he passed away on December 26, 2001, survived by his wife Dorothy, niece Rose Sage Arenz, and nephew Jack Waterhouse.

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Six Are Arrested In Sailor Murder

Trenton Times

Six Are Arrested In Sailor Murder — Trenton Times, June 21, 1930

(Associated Press)

CAMDEN, N.J., June 10.—Release on bail of Albert Saunders, 24, a waiter in a Camden barroom, who is held as a material witness in the death of Felice Solury, 24, a sailor of Waterbury, Conn., will be asked today by his attorney. Solury died of a fractured skull in the Naval Hospital at Philadelphia Sunday.

Saunders, with Rollie Waterhouse, 22, Samuel Wortz, 27, and three women, all of Camden, were held in connection with Solury’s death from a blow on the head received in a fight in a South Camden Cafe Saturday.

Two women identified Saunders as the man who struck Solury, but Saunders denied this. A charge of murder was first placed against him by Rocco Palese, assistant prosecutor, yesterday, but this was withdrawn in place of one charging him as being a material witness.

Samuel Wortz — Albert Saunders — Rollie Waterhouse — Angelo Solury — Rocco Palese

Three Are Arrested In Camden Holdup

Trenton Times

Three Are Arrested In Camden Holdup — Trenton Times, November 21, 1930

(Associated Press)

PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 21.—Three holdup suspects were arrested in a taxicab on the Delaware River bridge today after an attempt to rob the Davis Hotel in Philadelphia and the robbery of $59 from the Hotel Camden, in Camden, N.J.

One of the suspects said he was Rallie Waterhouse, 20, of Camden, who was a witness in the trial of Albert Saunders in Camden for the killing of Angelo Solury, a sailor, in a Camden cafe. Saunders was acquitted. The others gave their names as Joseph McKenna, 29, and Ralph Endt, 25, both of Camden.

Charles West, 68, night clerk in the Davis Hotel, was struck on the head with a blackjack by a robber, but managed to sound an alarm and frighten the robber away before he could open the hotel safe. Harry A. Gorman, cashier at the Hotel Camden, was held up by three men who grabbed his cash box.

Ralph Endt — Joseph McKenna — Albert Saunders — Charles West — Davis Hotel — Hotel Camden — Harry A. Gorman — Angelo Solury — Little Cafe

3 Go On Trial Today For Hotel Holdup

Camden Morning Post

3 Go On Trial Today For Hotel Holdup — Camden Morning Post, December 1, 1930 3 Go On Trial Today For Hotel Holdup (continued) — Camden Morning Post, December 1, 1930

Rollie Waterhouse and Pals Face Charge of Robbing Clerk of Camden Hostelry

Postponed from last Monday, the trial of three men held here as hotel bandits, opens today.

The three held are Rollie Waterhouse, 19, of 442 Mechanic street, who since his arrest has been identified as the “gunman” in a Paulsboro gas station robbery, Joseph McKenna, 29, of 550 Lansdowne avenue, and Ralph Endt, 23, of 1161 Van Hook street.

The three are accused of holding up and robbing the night clerk and elevator operator in the Hotel Camden on November 21. All three figured in the recent Solury murder case in which Albert Saunders was acquitted. The case is before Judge Samuel M. Shay in the Camden County Criminal Court.

Waterhouse was named as the slayer of the sailor by three witnesses but was not arrested when. Prosecutor Clifford A. Baldwin declared “the case closed.”

Suspect in Holdup Identified at Trial

Camden Evening Courier

Suspect in Holdup Identified at Trial — Camden Evening Courier, December 1, 1930 Suspect in Holdup Identified at Trial (continued) Suspect in Holdup Identified at Trial (continued) Suspect in Holdup Identified at Trial (continued) Suspect in Holdup Identified at Trial (continued) Suspect in Holdup Identified at Trial (continued) — jury list

Hotel Night Clerk Not Certain of 2 Others in Robbery

Positive identification was made of one of three bandit suspects who went on trial today in Criminal Court on charges of holding up and robbing the night clerk and elevator operator of the Hotel Camden on the morning of November 21.

The defendants, all of whom deny the charges, are Rollie Waterhouse, 19, of 422 Mechanic street; Joseph McKenna, 29, of 550 Lansdowne avenue; and Ralph Endt, 23, of 1161 Van Hook street. They are named in one joint indictment charging robbery.

They were arrested less than an hour after the holdup when they were crossing the Camden Bridge in a taxicab. Under the seat was $76.83, just 40 cents more than the bandits took from Harry A. Auman, the night clerk, and Jacob Davis, the elevator operator.

Auman, the first witness called by the state today, walked over to the defense table and dramatically identified Endt as the bandit who leaped over a desk and commanded him to throw up his hands. Endt nervously rubbed his lips but stared steadily at his accuser during the brief ordeal.

But when he was asked to identify Waterhouse and McKenna as the other bandits, Auman could not do so, although he testified that a second bandit had run behind the desk and poked something against his ribs. The lobby was dark, the clerk averred, and he couldn’t distinguish the features of the other two men. He further declared that Endt had no weapon in his hands, but had sharply commanded him to open the safe.

The trial opened before Judge Samuel M. Shay shortly after 10 a.m., and a panel of 24 veniremen was summoned. The prisoners were handcuffed together when they were escorted into the court room by Constable Vernon Lyons, William Gaskill and William Sawyer. However, Prosecutor Baldwin later ordered the handcuffs removed.

When the panel was called, the prosecutor asked if any of the prospective jurors knew the defendants, and there was no response. Samuel P. Orlando, defense attorney, then asked the veniremen if they had read newspaper accounts of the holdup, if they knew the complainants or had any connection with the hotel, if they were clients of the prosecutor or his aides and if they had cases or friends who had cases in the prosecutor’s office. Again there was no response, and the selection of the jury began.

All three defendants were held as material witnesses in the murder of Angelo Solury, sailor killed in the “Little Club,” a Mt. Vernon street speakeasy, June 6. Later, Albert Saunders, who was tried for Solury’s murder, named Waterhouse as the actual slayer, as did two other defense witnesses. Saunders was acquitted. And Prosecutor Baldwin, when asked if Waterhouse would be charged with the murder, announced that the case was closed.

Waterhouse has, since his arrest in the hotel holdup, been identified as the “gunman” in the holdup of a Paulsboro gasoline filling station, which occurred about six hours before the hotel robbery.

The three were arrested, arraigned in police court and indicted on the same day of the holdup. They were to have gone on trial last Monday, but the case was postponed until today on Orlando’s request.

The jury was completed in one hour at 11.20 a.m. Eight women and four men were chosen from a total of 48 veniremen. The state used 10 of its 12 preemptory challenges, while the defense used 18 of its 20 challenges. The first juror drawn, as is customary, was named forelady.

The jury follows: Mrs. Mary L. Klein, housewife, 127 North Thirty-second street; Mrs. Mary J. Sayre, housewife, Brooklawn; John Quirk, clerk, 859 North Thirty-second street; Cecilia Cahill, saleslady, 116 North Sussex street, Gloucester; Mrs. Minnie Hines, housewife, 2729 Lincoln avenue; Mrs. Elizabeth S. Sharp, housewife, Blackwood; Russell Kleaman, mechanic, 228 Hampshire avenue, Audubon; Mrs. Nellie Powell, housewife, 613 Market street, Gloucester; George James, retired, 428 Middlesex street, Gloucester; Mrs. Ida M. Palme, housewife, 13 West Wayne terrace, Collingswood; Mrs. Mary Cantwell, housewife, 1030 North Twenty-first street; and Thomas Haggerty, mechanic, Stratford.

Samuel P. Orlando — Ralph Endt — Joseph McKenna — Clifford Baldwin — Samuel M. Shay — Albert Saunders — Harry Auman — Jacob Davis — Vernon Lyons — William Gaskill — William Sawyer — Angelo Solury — Little Cafe — Hotel Camden — Mt. Vernon StreetVan Hook StreetMechanic StreetLansdowne Avenue — North 32nd Street — Lincoln Avenue — North 21st Street — Mary I. Klein — Mary J. Sayre — John Quirk — Cecilia Cahill — Minnie Hines — Elizabeth S. Sharp — Russell Kleaman — Nellie Powell — George James — Ida M. Palme — Mary Cantwell — Thomas Haggerty

Hotel Holdup Denied By 3 On Witness Stand

Camden Evening Courier

Hotel Holdup Denied By 3 On Witness Stand — Camden Evening Courier, December 2, 1930 Hotel Holdup Denied By 3 On Witness Stand (continued) Hotel Holdup Denied By 3 On Witness Stand (continued) Hotel Holdup Denied By 3 On Witness Stand (continued) Hotel Holdup Denied By 3 On Witness Stand (continued) Hotel Holdup Denied By 3 On Witness Stand (continued) Hotel Holdup Denied By 3 On Witness Stand (continued) Hotel Holdup Denied By 3 On Witness Stand (continued) Hotel Holdup Denied By 3 On Witness Stand (continued)

Alleged Bandits Tell Jury They Were Gambling at Time of Robbery

Waterhouse in Clash With State’s Attorney

Defendant Says Money Found in Taxi Had Been Won in Gloucester

Three Camden men on trial on charges of holding up the night clerk and elevator operator of the Hotel Camden November 21, and robbing them of $67.43, went on the stand in their own defense today and made a complete denial.

They are Rollie Waterhouse, 19, of 422 Mechanic street; Joseph McKenna, 29, of 550 Lansdowne avenue; and Ralph Endt, 23, of 1161 Van Hook street. Under direct examination by their counsel, Samuel P. Orlando, and in cross examination by Prosecutor Baldwin, they presented an alibi in which they said they had been gambling in Gloucester at or about the time of the holdup.

Waterhouse and the prosecutor clashed while the former took the stand as the first defense witness. It was after Waterhouse had retraced his movements of the morning of the holdup that Prosecutor Baldwin started to delve further into Waterhouse’s affairs.

Under cross examination, Waterhouse admitted that he hasn’t worked for a year. He stated he had lived with a sister.

“Where do you get the money with which to gamble?” asked Baldwin.

“From my brother.”

Then, after Waterhouse averred he had left Gloucester for Camden between 5 and 5.30 a.m., “just at dawn,” Baldwin asked him if he knew that on that particular morning the sun rose at 6.51 a.m.

“I don’t know anything about the sun rising,” replied Waterhouse. “It was just beginning to become daylight.”

Then Baldwin questioned him closely about a gambling den which Waterhouse said he had visited with McKenna and Endt early that morning.

He averred he did not know the name of the proprietor nor its exact address, except that it was on Jersey avenue between Seventh and Eighth streets, Gloucester. He didn’t know the names of any of the other men there, except there was an “Ed,” “Quirt” and “John.”

“Would you be willing to point out this house to the prosecutor if he went down there with you this afternoon?” asked Orlando.

“Yes.”

Refuses to Make Complaint

“If you showed it to me, would you be willing to sign a complaint against the proprietor?” pressed Baldwin.

“No. Why should I?” asked Waterhouse.

Waterhouse, in direct examination, testified that he and his two companions had gone to the private house in Gloucester and played dice. He said he won some money, and the three walked to Broadway at about 5.30 a.m., where they got a “hop” to Camden with a motorist whom they did not know. They alighted at Broadway and Federal streets, and decided to go to a Turkish bathhouse at Twelfth and Federal streets in Philadelphia. They went to Broadway and Cooper street, where they called a cab.

In the cab, Waterhouse said, he took out his winnings and started to count them in order to split with his companions. He referred to his friends as “Mr. Endt” and “Mr. McKenna.” He had the money in his hands when the cab was stopped by bridge police. He placed it on the seat. Under cross-examination, he said he did not know how the money came to be found under the seat. He said he might have had a P.R.T. token, as he sometimes used the tokens in Philadelphia. A token was in the loot stolen from the hotel.

He then told how the night clerk could not identify him or McKenna, and hesitated before identifying Endt, finally saying to the latter that “if it wasn’t you, it was your twin brother.” When questioned how he had happened to have a paper roll of five-cent pieces, Waterhouse said some of the money he had won was paid to him in that form. His winnings, he said, comprised one-dollar bills and change, and he had counted up to $50 when the bridge cops appeared.

Waterhouse was a state’s witness at the trial of Albert Saunders, who was acquitted of the murder of Angelo Solury, U.S. sailor slain in the Little Club, a Mount Vernon street speakeasy, last June. At that time it was not the state but the defense which brought out that Waterhouse to all appearances was a “man about town,” in that he did not work for a living.

At Saunders’ trial, Saunders and two other defense witnesses flatly accused Waterhouse of the Solury murder. When the jury exonerated Waterhouse, Prosecutor Baldwin was asked if Waterhouse would be arrested. The prosecutor averred that the “case is closed.” A short time later Waterhouse was arrested in the hotel holdup and was also identified as the “gunman” in a Paulsboro gas station holdup. McKenna and Endt had also been held as material witnesses in the Solury murder, but were not called upon to testify by the state.

Defense Motions Denied

The state rested at 10.37 a.m., and then Judge Shay denied two motions by Orlando for a directed verdict of acquittal. Orlando first moved for acquittal of McKenna and Waterhouse.

Orlando held that the state had failed to identify Waterhouse and McKenna with the holdup, and that the fact they were arrested less than an hour after the holdup with Endt in a taxicab in which $67.83 was found under the seat, was purely circumstantial evidence occurring after the holdup. Defense counsel also pointed out that while Harry A. Auman, the clerk, had identified Endt as one of three bandits, he failed to identify Waterhouse and McKenna, and had even refused to sign a complaint against them in police court.

Second Motion Denied

When Judge Shay dismissed the motion on the ground that there was enough evidence to permit the case to go to the jury, Orlando then moved for a verdict of acquittal for all three defendants. He said the joint indictment against them charges “robbery by force and putting in fear,” and that the state had failed to prove the elements of robbery, that any violence was used or that Auman was put in fear.

Judge Shay denied the second motion, averring that the hotel lobby was dark, and one of the bandits placed something, a finger or a weapon, against Auman. “If I were in his position, I would be frightened under those circumstances regardless of whether it was a gun or not, especially since it was too dark to determine this,” stated Judge Shay.

The state today moved to spike what had appeared to be the foundation of a defense alibi. Yesterday, Edward Schreyer, 124 North Tenth street, driver of the taxicab in which the three were arrested, testified that at 5.25 p.m., he had picked up three fares at the Pennsauken police station and taken them to Camden. A short time later, he picked up Waterhouse, McKenna and Endt at Broadway and Cooper street.

Three Fares Called

Today the state called the three fares, James McGinnis, 1115 Federal street; Joseph Dent, 315 Taylor avenue, and his brother, Walter Dent. They averred they had been playing cards at a friend’s house the preceding night and were speeding on Crescent boulevard when their car overturned near Central Airport. They were either at Cooper Hospital or at the Pennsauken police headquarters between 1.30 a.m. and 5.25 a.m. They said they had not been playing for money and had little cash.

Two Pennsauken policemen, Fred Weyman and James Hoff, corroborated their testimony insofar as their whereabouts at the time of the holdup. Sergeant Michael Bachmayer, of the Camden Bridge police, the last state’s witness, described how two bridge cops chased Schreyer’s cab on the bridge and overtook it to arrest the three suspects.

North 10th Street — Broadway — Cooper Street — Federal Street — Taylor Avenue — Central Airport — Fred Weyman — James Hoff — Michael Bachmayer

3 Freed in Holdup By Jury Held for Woodbury Court

Camden Evening Courier

3 Freed in Holdup By Jury Held for Woodbury Court — Camden Evening Courier, December 3, 1930 3 Freed in Holdup By Jury Held for Woodbury Court (continued) 3 Freed in Holdup By Jury Held for Woodbury Court (continued) 3 Freed in Holdup By Jury Held for Woodbury Court (continued) 3 Freed in Holdup By Jury Held for Woodbury Court (continued) 3 Freed in Holdup By Jury Held for Woodbury Court (continued) 3 Freed in Holdup By Jury Held for Woodbury Court (continued) 3 Freed in Holdup By Jury Held for Woodbury Court (continued) 3 Freed in Holdup By Jury Held for Woodbury Court (continued)

Waterhouse and Pals Cleared in Robbery at Hotel Camden

Prosecutor Hits Acquittal Verdict

Lack of Separate Indictments Said to Have Led to Verdict

Exonerated last night by a jury that decreed them not guilty of holding up the Hotel Camden, Rollie Waterhouse, 19-year-old “man of leisure” and his two pals face hearings at Woodbury on charges of holding up a gas station attendant.

Detainers filed at the county jail against the three suspects prevented their release after the jury, comprising eight women and four men, returned with the verdict at 8.17 p.m. after deliberating for more than four hours.

Today, Sheriff Jacob K. Tryon, of Gloucester county, dispatched County Detective W. Clayton Apgar and deputies to this city at 11.15 a.m. to take the three men to Woodbury. There they will be given a hearing before Police Recorder Edward H. Curtis on charges of holding up Thomas Riley, 57, of Ashland, attendant at the Lincoln Service Station, Paulsboro.

Riley identified Waterhouse, who resides at 422 Mechanic street, as the “gunman” of the trio of bandits who on November 20, at about 11 p.m., or about six hours before the Camden hotel holdup, entered the station and robbed him of $27.

He could not positively identify Ralph Endt, 23, of 1161 Van Hook street, and Joseph McKenna, 29, of 550 Lansdowne avenue, as the other members of the bandit trio. McKenna and Endt were co-defendants of Waterhouse in the trial which ended yesterday.

The “not guilty” verdict came as a distinct shock to the state, and Prosecutor Baldwin characterized it as “a most outrageous insult to the community.” He also stated that a charge of gambling will be placed against Waterhouse based on the prisoner’s own testimony in court yesterday. Waterhouse averred that the sum of $67.83 found under the seat of the taxicab in which he and his two friends were arrested after a short chase on the Camden Bridge was won at craps in a Gloucester gambling establishment.

“In my opinion, the verdict was a most outrageous insult to the community,” declared the prosecutor. “Our jury system is such that positive identifications are not relied upon. These particular men were found with the money (the sum found in the cab was only 40 cents in excess of the amount stolen from the hotel) which, it was testified, was stolen from the hotel and was found in their possession.”

“How any jury could so far disregard its oath as to acquit these offenders against the public safety is beyond my comprehension. Any such ridiculous verdict rendered against a defendant could immediately be set aside by the trial court and a new trial granted, but it is merely another one of the criminal’s privileges that once acquitted, he cannot be retried.”

State to Keep Money

“No money will be returned, because a specific charge of gambling will be lodged against Waterhouse, growing out of his own testimony that the money was the fruit of that gambling. Perhaps this action will not be taken until the Gloucester county authorities have had the opportunity of convicting Waterhouse on a more serious charge pending against him in that county.”

The state had based its case on positive identification made of Endt by Harry Auman, the Hotel Camden night clerk. Auman could not identify McKenna or Waterhouse. The three were arrested less than an hour after the holdup with a sum of money almost identical with that stolen from the hotel.

Rollie Waterhouse — Ralph Endt — Joseph McKenna — Clifford Baldwin — Harry Auman — Hotel Camden — Van Hook StreetMechanic StreetLansdowne Avenue

Writ Asked to Free Waterhouse, Pals

Camden Evening Courier

Writ Asked to Free Waterhouse, Pals — Camden Evening Courier, December 4, 1930 Writ Asked to Free Waterhouse, Pals (continued)

Attorneys Claim Trio Held Illegally at Woodbury in Holdup

Woodbury, Dec. 4.—Application for a writ of habeas corpus was made today to liberate Rollie Waterhouse, Ralph Endt and Joseph McKenna, who are being held in the Gloucester county jail without bail awaiting a further hearing on charges of holding up a Paulsboro gas station attendant.

Their attorney, Samuel P. Orlando, made application through an associate, Frank Lario, to Judge Austin H. Swackhamer here this morning for a writ, and it was made returnable Saturday morning. At the writ hearing Orlando will demand that the three be released. Failing that, he will ask that bail be fixed.

Following their acquittal Tuesday by a Criminal Court jury in Camden of charges of holding up two Hotel Camden employees, the three were brought here yesterday when arraigned before Police Recorder Edward H. Curtis. They were charged with holding up Thomas Riley, 59, of Ashland, attendant at the Lincoln Service Station, Paulsboro, on the evening of Nov. 20, and robbing him of $22.75.

No testimony was given at yesterday’s hearing, nor was Riley there. Recorder Curtis held them without bail for a further hearing Monday, when Riley would attend to accuse the men. He has already identified Waterhouse as the “gunman” of the bandit trio who robbed him, and an additional charge of carrying a concealed deadly weapon is lodged against Waterhouse.

In making application for the writ today Lario held that the confinement of the three men is illegal. This was based on several contentions: that no proof was offered against the men at the hearing, that the offense charged is bailable, that the men were not given the right of counsel and that they were not given the opportunity to face their accuser.

Rollie Waterhouse — Ralph Endt — Joseph McKenna — Samuel P. OrlandoFrank Lario — Hotel Camden

Waterhouse, 2 Pals Win Fight for Bail

Camden Evening Courier

Waterhouse, 2 Pals Win Fight for Bail — Camden Evening Courier, December 6, 1930 Waterhouse, 2 Pals Win Fight for Bail (continued)

Writ to Release Three Bandit Suspects Issued in Woodbury Court

Woodbury, Dec. 6.—Bail of $5000 each was set for Rollie Waterhouse, Joseph McKenna and Ralph Endt by Judge Austin H. Swackhamer here today in granting their application for a writ of habeas corpus.

The three are held on charges of holding up a gasoline station on the Crown Point road near Paulsboro early on the morning of Nov. 21. Thomas Riley, the station attendant, about 65 years old, positively identified Waterhouse at the habeas corpus hearing as the man who held him up while two other men robbed the gas station of $67.43.

Riley said he thought Endt was the man who took the money from the cash register but was not positive. He was unable to identify McKenna.

The three men were held without bail by Justice of the Peace Edward H. Curtis Thursday after they were acquitted in Camden of holding up the Camden hotel on Nov. 21 about 5 a.m. Samuel P. Orlando, their attorney, made application for the writ of habeas corpus shortly after the hearing and it was allowed by Judge Swackhamer.

Raymond Geoghegan, a Camden bridge policeman, arrested the trio at 6.10 a.m. on Nov. 21 when he saw them slouched in the rear of a taxi coming through the toll gates.

Policemen Albert Thompson and Charles Duer testified that they saw a roadster bearing the license number Z14397, the same as that of the car in the holdup, speeding up Delsea drive at 2.30 a.m. after the gas station holdup and later found the machine abandoned in the woods along the Turkey Hill road in Westville Grove.

Orlando asked that low bail be fixed for the three but Judge Swackhamer said he could not consider bail of less than $5000 in this case. Arrangements to raise the bail were being made this afternoon.

Rollie Waterhouse — Ralph Endt — Joseph McKenna — Samuel P. Orlando — Raymond Geoghegan — Hotel Camden

10-Year Term In Cell Given Waterhouse

Camden Courier-Post

10-Year Term In Cell Given Waterhouse — Camden Courier-Post, October 22, 1936 10-Year Term In Cell Given Waterhouse (continued) 10-Year Term In Cell Given Waterhouse (continued) 10-Year Term In Cell Given Waterhouse (continued) 10-Year Term In Cell Given Waterhouse (continued)

Pal in Holdup Case Also Sentenced to Prison By Neutze

Ten to 15 years in the state prison at Trenton and a $1000 fine each were the sentences imposed in Camden Criminal Court yesterday by Judge Frank F. Neutze upon Rollie Waterhouse, 26, and Harry Sheer, hoodlums convicted of highway robbery.

Imposition of the fine prevents removal of either prisoner from the prison to a prison farm until the fine is paid.

A third defendant in the case, Daniel Rudinoff, was refused parole and sent to the Annandale Reformatory for an indeterminate sentence. Waterhouse was convicted and on his way to prison 32 minutes after a jury of nine men and three women received his case.

The trio was charged with beating and robbing the escort of a girl in Gloucester on May 16 last, taking $17 from the man, after severely beating him. Sheer and Rudinoff had pleaded guilty, but Waterhouse had insisted on a trial by jury.

Judge Neutze was especially emphatic in sentencing the gangsters, and disregarded the plea of Albert Brager, that Rudinoff be given freedom on parole, because of his excellent past record. Rudinoff had been given an opportunity to turn state’s evidence, which he did, but when he testified he said that he was so drunk “he couldn’t remember a thing about it.”

That apparently incensed the court.

“I feel different toward you, young man,” he said to the prisoner, “than toward these other prisoners. I intended to give you a suspended sentence because you had never been in trouble before.

“But you didn’t come clean. You had a chance to help this court but you were not fair to the court. I know the reason that you acted as you did on the witness stand is because you are afraid that Waterhouse’s gang might get you.

“These local gangsters, though, I have found are brave outside but when they come in here, they are cowards and just ‘can’t take it.’ I am going to give you an indeterminate sentence.”

E. George Aaron, attorney for Rudinoff, then added his plea for probation.

“I believe these men he was associated with to be the worst in this country,” retorted Judge Neutze. “I believe he should be punished. These Camden gangsters, anyway, are nothing but a bunch of bums, and are better out of society than in it. I just can’t let this young man go. He must be sent to Annandale.”

The victim of the gangsters’ attack was James Law, 21, of 225 Monmouth street, Gloucester.

It was charged that Law and Miss Virginia Wade, of 1407 Princess avenue, were awaiting a bus at Broadway and Hudson street, Gloucester, when they were attacked by three men on a nearby step.

Law and Miss Wade identified Waterhouse as a participant in the fight and robbery and picked Rudinoff from among the spectators at the trial. Rudinoff is out on bail. Sheer is in jail.

Waterhouse denied aiding the robbery and said he was so drunk at the time that he did not remember what happened. Rudinoff, questioned as a state’s witness, said he was tipsy, too. Waterhouse said he recalled a fight and trying to stop it. It was brought out that the missing $17 was found by a Gloucester policeman in Rudinoff’s pocket.

Sheer was brought down from the county jail and admitted writing a letter to Waterhouse, stating that he was not guilty in the affair and shouldering the guilt with Rudinoff. Sheer was taken into custody last week at Fort Smith, Arkansas, when, as a fugitive, he surrendered to police.

Obituary

WATERHOUSE, RALSTON J.

On December 26, 2001, Ralston J. age 91 years. Beloved husband of Dorothy M. (nee Cutler) of Southampton, NJ. Survived by a niece Rose Arenz of Camden, a nephew Jack of Tampa, FL. Also survived by Lorraine Leise, Debra Dera and family, Barbara Berner and family all of Haddon Heights, NJ. Interment private at the convenience of the family.

Arrangements by DUBOIS FUNERAL HOME, 700 White Horse Pike, Audubon.

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