Mr. NELSON. That's the only thing. Mr. SOLOMON. When did you next get employment? Mr. NELSON. I didn't get any employment. I wasn't employed until October. Mr. SOLOMON. October. When you speak, by the way, of being paid by Simkins, Yvonne Simkins was the owner of the Brass Rail in title. wasn't she? Mr. NELSON. Well, of course, I worked under Simkins. She was the operator of the place. Mr. SOLOMON. She was the operator, but who was the real boss, the straw boss? Mr. NELSON. Simkins, and then the day manager was in charge. Mr. SOLOMON. I see. Now, you did not have any employment at all until the end of October, you say? Mr. NELSON. That's right. Mr. SOLOMON. Prior to the time that you went to Morgantown, W. Va., with your wife, did you happen to see or meet Piggy Leake? Mr. NELSON. Repeat that clearly. Mr. SOLOMON. Prior to the time, before you went to West Virginia in August, did you happen to see Piggy Leake? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. Where did you see him? Mr. NELSON. Up on U Street. Mr. SOLOMON. Did you seek him out? Mr. NELSON. No. We just happened to pass one another. Mr. SOLOMON. And did you stop to talk to him or did he stop you! Mr. NELSON. He stopped me. Mr. SOLOMON. What did he say to you? Mr. NELSON. He come over and he said, "Charlie, I am sorry I did this." He said, "I would have been to see you before now, but Simkins told me not to come near you, that you'd hurt me.' Mr. SOLOMON. And did he tell you what he wanted to do, or did he say he wanted to see you further? Mr. NELSON. He did. He told me he wanted to talk with me and to come over to his house. Mr. SOLOMON. Did you know where his house was? Mr. NELSON. At that time I didn't. He gave me the address. Mr. SOLOMON. Did he tell you where it was? Mr. NELSON. He told me where it was at. Mr. SOLOMON. And do you know what the address is? Mr. NELSON. Yes, I do. Mr. SOLOMON. What is the address? Mr. NELSON. 104 R Street NE. Mr. SOLOMON. And did you go to 104 R Street? Mr. NELSON. Not then. Mr. SOLOMON. Did you go over at some later occasion after you had visited him? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. And when you went over there on that occasion, did you have a conversation with him at 104 R Street? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. Will you tell us what the nature of that conversation: was? Mr. NELSON. The nature of that conversation was that Leake said, "Charlie, I'm sorry what I did." He said he was sorry that he shot me. Mr. SOLOMON. Yes? Mr. NELSON. That he didn't have anything; that he would try to compensate me. Mr. SOLOMON. And did he promise you any money at that time? Mr. NELSON. He didn't promise me anything. He said, "I'll try to get something." I don't recall just how it was then. Mr. SOLOMON. Did he give you any money at that time? Mr. NELSON. No; he didn't. Mr. SOLOMON. Now you say you went to Morgantown, W. Va., during August. Did anything unusual happen while you were there? Did anything happen to your wife or yourself? Mr. NELSON. Yes. I was taking my wife to my sister's house. Mr. SOLOMON. Yes. Mr. NELSON. In Morgantown, W. Va.? Mr. SOLOMON. Yes. Mr. NELSON. And she got sick on the way going. Mr. SOLOMON. Yes. And was it necessary to put her in a hospital? Mr. NELSON. I had to rush her right to the hospital. Mr. SOLOMON. Was she operated upon? Mr. NELSON. She was. Mr. SOLOMON. Was she confined to the hospital for an time? Mr. NELSON. She was. Mr. SOLOMON. For how long? Mr. NELSON. Approximately 3 weeks, to my recollection. Mr. SOLOMON. Now at the time that she had an operation, did you find out how much money this would cost? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. And how much were you told? Mr. NELSON. It was near $400. Mr. SOLOMON. Four hundred dollars. Now did you pay this money? Mr. NELSON. No, I didn't. Mr. SOLOMON. I mean did you ever pay the hospital bill? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. You paid a total of how much money, did you say? Mr. NELSON. Approximately four hundred. I can't be exact. Mr. SOLOMON. Now I show you a bill of Heiskell Memorial Hospital in the sum of $81.25 which is paid in full on August 12, 1948, and a receipt of payment of $150 for professional services and operation and assistant fee on the wife, $150, W. Merle Warman, doctor in Morgantown. A receipt for various laboratory fees and drugs in the amount of $28.10, the Mile Ground Medical Center in Morgantown dated August 25. Does that refresh your recollection as to the period of time your wife was ill? Mr. NELSON. Yes; that is about the right time it was. Mr. SOLOMON. Where did you get the money to pay for this, Mr. Nelson? Mr. NELSON. I got the money from Piggy Leake. Mr SOLOMON. How much all told did you get from Piggy Leake? Mr. NELSON. Piggy Leake gave me $500 that time. Mr. SOLOMON. At that time? Mr. NELSON. At that time. Mr. SOLOMON. How much all told over a period of time did you get from him? Mr. NELSON. I got over a period of time around sixteen to seventeen hundred from Leake. Mr. SOLOMON. Now this first installment of $500 you got during the period of time that your wife was in the hospital, is that correct? Mr. NELSON. That's correct. Mr. SOLOMON. And you left your wife in Morgantown and returned to Washington? Mr. NELSON. That's right. Mr. SOLOMON. And did you seek Piggy out at that time? Mr. NELSON. I think I came back. I think that I called Leake. Mr. SOLOMON. And did you arrange to meet him? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. And did you meet him some place? Mr. SOLOMON. Where did you meet him? Mr. NELSON. I think that was at his home, if I can recall. Mr. NELSON. He did. Mr. SOLOMON. Do you remember the denominations of the bills? Mr. NELSON. It was $50 bills, twenties and tens, something in that denomination. Mr. SOLOMON. At that time did he promise to give you any other money? Mr. NELSON. He did. Mr. SOLOMON. And did he tell you how much he intended to give you? Mr. NELSON. He didn't. Mr. SOLOMON. He did not? Mr. NELSON. He did not. Mr. SOLOMON. He indicated apparently generally that he would give you some more money? Mr. NELSON. That's right. The CHAIRMAN. Then the reason you did not ask to testify against Leake for attempting to murder you lies in the fact that he had given you some compensation for the injury he had inflicted upon you? Mr. NELSON. That is true. The CHAIRMAN. He gave you sixteen or seventeen hundred dollars in cash, and promised to give you more if you refrained from prosecuting him? Mr. NELSON. That is right. The CHAIRMAN. That is not a legitimate way to settle a criminal case. Senator WELKER. Somebody came pretty close to compounding a felony there. The CHAIRMAN. In my opinion, the district attorney should have insisted that this witness be compelled to testify against the man who tried to kill him. Mr. SOLOMON. Now, Mr. Nelson, did you get any money, further money from Mr. Leake? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. When did you get the second installment? Mr. NELSON. I got the second installment; I just can't recall when the second installment was. Mr. SOLOMON. About what time? When was it? Was it before the trial or after? Mr. NELSON. It was before the trial. Mr. SOLOMON. Where did you get that money! Mr. NELSON. Off of Leake. Mr. SOLOMON. Where did you get it? At your house or at his house? Mr. NELSON. At my house. He gave that at my house. Mr. SOLOMON. Did you get some more money from Leake after the trial? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. How much money did you get in the third installment? Mr. NELSON. I think it was around seven or six hundred dollars. I can't recall just what it was. Mr. SOLOMON. Now where was the third and last installment paid? Mr. NELSON. In a car. Mr. SOLOMON. Whose car? Mr. NELSON. His car. Mr. SOLOMON. And in what denominations was it paid? Mr. NELSON. It was paid in, I think, $50 bills; I believe it was. Mr. NELSON. I spent the money for lawyers and my wife's hospital bill. Mr. SOLOMON. And how much were you charged by Mr. Margolius? Mr. NELSON. $750. Mr. SOLOMON. And what was the total amount of money that you spent on hospital bills? Mr. NELSON. To the best recollection it was $400 or something like that, with doctors included. Mr. SOLOMON. And did you have any other expenses that you used this money for? Mr. NELSON. Well, I had to use it for a living. I had to have money to live on. Mr. SOLOMON. Did you have during this period of time any conversation with a man named Norman Suter? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. Where did you happen to see Suter? Mr. NELSON. Up on U Street. Mr. SOLOMON. What did Suder say to you? Mr. NELSON. Suter told me Leake should appreciate what I did and he said some words I am trying to get, not the exact, but the substance of that; that as long as Leake had a dollar, he should give me half of it. Mr. SOLOMON. Did you see Simkins after the trial? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. Did you own an automobile? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. When did you buy the automobile? Mr. SOLOMON. Of 1947? Mr. NELSON. That's right. Mr. SOLOMON. What kind of a car was it? pay for it? How much did you Mr. NELSON. I paid $2,350, I believe. Mr. SOLOMON. In cash? Mr. NELSON. Cash money; yes. Mr. SOLOMON. Was all that money yours or did you have to borrow some? Mr. NELSON. I borrowed the money. Mr. SOLOMON. And who did you borrow the money from in 1947, June of 1947 ? Mr. NELSON. Roger Simkins. Mr. SOLOMON. How much did you borrow from him? him? Mr. SOLOMON. And on what terms were you to repay Mr. NELSON. I believe it was $75, if I am not mistaken; $75 a month, I think it was. Mr. SOLOMON. Did you pay these notes after Roger Simkins stopped paying you as manager, night manager of Brass Rail? Mr. NELSON. I believe I did. Mr. SOLOMON. You have shown me seven note notices of the Riggs National Bank. Let me introduce them into the record. They are each in the amount of $75. The last due date is January 13, 1948. Did you pay any other notes? Mr. NELSON. Not that I can recall. (The documents referred to above are identified as "Exhibit No. 14," and are on file with the committee.) Mr. SOLOMON. Did you see Simkins with respect to paying off the balance of these notes? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. What did he have to say to you? Mr. NELSON. The balance was $600 and he told me to forget about it, the $600. Mr. SOLOMON. You never paid off the $600 at the bank that you borrowed? Mr. NELSON. I didn't. Mr. SOLOMON. Now you got a job, you say, in October. Did you see Piggy Leake sometime during the spring of 1949? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. Where did you see him? you have at that time? What kind of a job did Mr. NELSON. I had a job at that time with Globe Brewing Co. Mr. NELSON. That's right. Mr. SOLOMON. And did you happen to see Piggy uptown? Mr. NELSON. I did. Mr. SOLOMON. Did you say anything to him or ask him anything with respect to why you had been shot? Mr. NELSON. I diď. Mr. SOLOMON. What did Piggy say to you? Mr. NELSON. Piggy asked me-I asked him rather why did he shoot He said that he would tell me. me. Mr. SOLOMON. Did he ever tell you, Mr. Nelson? |