Reed v. State

Grason, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. The traverser was indicted in the Criminal Court of Baltimore City for maintaining a disorderly house, tried before Chief Judge Smith, without a jury, convicted and sentenced, and the case is now here on appeal. The facts of the case may be stated as follows: The traverser operated, for many years, a rooming house at 667 W. Franklin Street, Baltimore City. Captain Alexander L. Emerson, of the Baltimore City Police Department, received a complaint that soldiers were going to this place with lewd women.

There also appears to have been a complaint by the Health Department. Around four o’clock on the morning of September 10, 1950, the Captain paid a call at this place. He rapped on the door and was admitted by the traverser to what we suppose is the office. There was a man with her.

The Captain was authorized, under section 120 Article 16 of the Code of Baltimore City (1927) to visit such places as this and to inspect the register. “I told her that I ⁵⁴² was Captain Emerson. She said; ‘Yes, I know you.’ I said: ‘We have a complaint from the United States Army about venereal disease here with the soldiers.’ She said: ‘Yes, I didn’t get word from the Army, but 1 did get notice from the Health Department that that had happened.’ I said: ‘Do you have any soldiers in here now?’ She said: ‘Not as I know of.’ I asked her to let me look at the book. I looked at the book, or at the cards there (indicating).” It appeared from these cards, which represented the register that the Captain inspected, that on the night of September 9-10 three couples had been registered at different times in one room, and also on that night two couples had been registered at different times in each of four other rooms. It was apparent that the section of the code referred to had been violated.

The Captain’s suspicions were aroused. He testified: “I asked her to come on. She said to