1915-01-14ss

Shortly after Raefiaio Ruffunio had finished his testimony, late in the day of January 22, 1915, the judge asked the defense attorney about the whereabouts of Joe Sdoleine and his wife. They were reportedly not in Hamilton but in Toronto. The attorney had intimated that their presence in court might be helpful for his case:

“His lordship announced that it was the intention of the court to give the defense every opportunity of establishing its case, and for that reason had he ordered the two Toronto witnesses to be brought to Hamilton at once.”¹

¹ “Ruffino Tells Story of Melini Slaying”

Hamilton Spectator.   January 23, 1915.

Earlier in the day, the defense attorney had also claimed that a man named Lorenzo Rossi, nicknamed Polatine, would also be helpful to the defense were he brought to the court room :

“(The judge) ordered Detective Shirley to go get Polatine, no matter where he was.

“The time was 6:15, and the detective hurried out of the room to the police station, then to the east end. There he learned that his man was in Toronto. Arriving in that city at 11 at night, he scouted around the foreign district until he was tipped off that Polatine was in a boarding house on Nelson street. The ‘boss’ of this house refused to let Shirley in, and it was necessary to force his way through, despite the threatening attitude of the men. In a bedroom he found Polatine hurriedly getting dressed.

“ ‘Come, I want you,’ ordered the detective.

“ ‘Where is my gun?’ cried the man, at the same time making an effort to draw one out from under the mattress of his bed.

“ ‘Throw up your hands!’ came the next order from the officer of the law.

“Then followed an exciting exit with Polatine, and when court opened, Detective Shirley produced his man, when when the detective had got him explained that he thought he was going to be arrested.

“The detective proved himself a brave and efficient officer.”²

² “Three Day Trial Ended : Sensational Trip of Detective For Witness”

Hamilton Times.   January25, 1915.

Detective Smith had been assigned to find the other two witnesses thought to be in Toronto, although Court Interpreter  Ernest Taylor who claimed that he had seen Joe in east end Hamilton recently. It was determined that only Joe and not his wife were needed to testify:

“Acting Detective E. J. Smith , also carried out a task in an efficient manner. He discovered that the boarding house boss at 39 Imperial street had seen the knife sheath, and went to get the witness who was supposedly working at the Westinghouse. The company informed him that no such man had worked for them since seven weeks. At 39 Burlington street, they said the man had left town.

“Smith is a persevering man, so he went back to the Westinghouse, and got in conversation with a number of Italians, and after judicious questioning discovered that the man was still working there – and got him.

“N. F. Davidson. K. C., and William Morrison, of this city, who acted for the crown, were high in their praise of these men, Detective Shirley and Acting Detective Smith. The getting of foreigners to act as witnesses is no easy task, and those who were obtained were found by these two men. A great many of the facts were discovered by them”²

The Court interpreter was also the recipient of praise for his work:

“Considerable  comment has been made on the work of Ernest Taylor, who interpreted all the evidence. For hours and hours he stood, asking the witnesses questions and conveying their answers to the crown and defense. He was spoken of as the hardest worked man during the trial.”²

In his response to questions from the Crown Attorney, Lorenzo Rossi admitted that he was with the defendant on the day of the affair:

“He said he was a very near and dear friend; had boarded with him in London and then in Hamilton, and slept in the same room. He was in the Brant street house in the morning, and swore that all were drinking there, before which they had been drinking at 41 Arthur street. Singing and making merry was the order of the day.

“He heard the discussion between Russini and Gaielleo over the Italian flag.”²

Lengthy questioning ensued in which Rossi detailed the various locations in which the drinking and arguing had taken place. Then the defense lawyer began:

“Questioned by Mr. McBayne, witness admitted that he had heard enough to know there was going to be a fight. He told Russini not to bother with them. He did not remember the prisoner going out, but he did know those in the room were having a heated dispute – Gherri was saying ‘Come outside and talk out there.’ He heard Russini say he would not go.

“I saw the tall Gheri put his hand on Russini’s shoulders. At that time, George, the tall man, was standing at the entrance to the passage. That was just before the shot.”²

One last witness, Enrico Sangerelli, boss of the boarding house on Burlington street, gave testimony about the protracted dispute between the defendant and Gaielleo Gheri and that he had seen a knife in Russini’s possession.

The final summations of the case by the defense lawyer and the Crown Attorney were next to be presented to the judge.

(Ti be continued)