FIVE MEN CHARGED BY GRAND JURY IN D.C. THEATER TRAGEDY
Washington, D.C. (JFK+50) On April 3, 1922, "five of the nine men held...responsible for the collapse of the Knickerbocker Theater, January 28 last, were indicted...by the grand jury on a charge of manslaughter."
According to the Evening Star, the grand jury determined that the four other men were not criminally liable in the tragedy which took the lives of ninety-eight persons.
The five charged includes...
Reginald W. Geare*, architect; John Howard Ford, roof engineer; Donald Wallace, general foreman; Richard G. Fletcher, subcontractor; and Julian R. Downman, assistant building inspector.
The prosecution states that these men had knowledge "that portions of the construction were not carried out to plans and specifications" and it was the duty of each to report this to the building's owners.
JFK +50 NOTE
The five men charged with responsibility for the Knickerbocker Theater tragedy were never convicted.
*Reginald Wycliffe Geare (1890-1927) was a theater architect whose career ended with the Knickerbocker Theater tragedy in 1922. The collapse of the structure's roof after a heavy snowfall killed 98 persons. RWG died by suicide on Aug 20 1927.
SOURCES
"Grand Jury Indicts Five For Collapse of Knickerbocker," The Evening Star, Washington, D.C., April 3, 1922, Chronicling America, Library of Congress, www.loc.gov/
"When a Winter Storm Triggered One of the Deadliest Disasters in D.C. History," by Kellie B. Gormly, January 26, 1922, Smithsonian Magazine, www.smithsonianmag.com/
