Page 6 University Daily Kansan Monday. Sept. 12. 1955
U.S. Officials Avoid Ransom Money Answer
By THE UNITED PRESS
Washington. —(UP)—Federal officials recently avoided a flat answer to the question—"What happens to the recovered Green-lease ransom money?"
But a justice department spokesman assured the public that "anybody who legally comes into possession of some of the bills will suffer no loss."
Twenty-two bills from the unrecovered portion of the $600,000 paid out in the Greenlease kidnapping case have recently been unearthed most of them through checks made by Federal Reserve Banks. But a Quincy, Ill., housewife came upon a $20 bill from the mysterious hoard this week.
The Federal Reserve, the FBI and the Justice Department were asked today who takes the money when it's found and who suffers the loss. The agencies answered those specific questions with a "no comment" although the Justice Department spokesman stressed that "anyone who accepts money in good faith" cannot get stuck by having it seized by the government.
The reluctance to answer more definitely apparently stems from a fear that an unworkable rule could be established and from a belief that some of the treasure is in the hands of criminals. In that event, the money would be forfeited.
Whenever the bills turn up, one spokesman pointed out, the matter of their disposition must be handled by the U. S. attorney in the area.
In all previous ransom cases which FBI and Justice Department officials could recall, the money ultimately was returned to the "rightful" owner—generally individuals, but sometimes the government.
Probably in the Greenlease case when the government takes a ransom bill from an individual, that person will get a receipt, one official said, and the money will be returned when it's no longer needed as evidence.
The father of the kidnapped boy, it was understood, was allowed to deduct some of the ransom from his 1953 income tax.
About $300,000 of the ransom has been recovered. The remaining portion includes bills in 10 and 20-dollar denominations from all twelve of the Federal Reserve districts. There is no particular series involved.
The FBI has distributed lists of the serial numbers to financial institutions, law enforcement agencies and many business firms throughout the country.
The ransom money was paid by the father of six-year-old Bobby Greenlease of Kansas City, Mo., who was kidnaped and murdered by Carl Austin Hall and Bonnie Brown Heady on Sept. 28, 1953. former St. Louis Police Lt. Louis Shoulders and Patrolman Elmer Dolan were convicted of lying to a Grand Jury trying to track down the missing ransom money.
Dr. Sokal Presents Scientific Paper
Dr. Robert Sokal, assistant professor of entomology, presented a scientific paper at the Meetings of the American Institute of Biological Sciences at Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, Sept. 5-9.
The paper is entitled "A Quantitative Approach to a Problem in Classification" and offers a new approach to the problem of evaluating relationship among groups of animal species. It is based on statistical procedure and aims at eliminating subjective bias from classification procedure in taxonomy.
Co-author with Dr. Sokal is Dr. Charles D. Michener, chairman of the department of entomology and currently on leave of absence in Brazil.
Presentation will be made before the Society for the Study of Evolution.
Bonds Away!
Newport, Ind.U.P.)—Joseph Jackson, a magazine salesman, had a habit of tossing a sample magazine to prospective customers. But one day he tossed into a front yard a magazine in which he had placed government bonds worth $400. Earl Burke kept the magazine, returned the bonds.
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