McFadden, Martin

Martin McFadden (1901-1981) was a Cleveland police officer for thirty-eight years. His family claim ancestry to Achill Island, County Mayo, Ireland. His father, also named Martin, immigrated to Cleveland, Ohio, in the late 1800s when he was twelve years old. The younger McFadden was a well-respected police officer and the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department requested his help as a bodyguard for four presidential inaugurations. McFadden was the arresting officer in the case of John W. Terry, Richard D. Chilton, and Carl Katz that led to the U.S. Supreme Court case of Terry v. Ohio (1968). The result of this case gave police officers the authority to stop and search citizens on the street.

From the description of Martin McFadden papers, 1925-2003. (Rhinelander District Library). WorldCat record id: 302367188

Martin McFadden (1901-1981) was a Cleveland police officer for thirty-eight years. His family claim ancestry to Achill Island, County Mayo, Ireland. His father, also named Martin, immigrated to Cleveland, Ohio, from Achill Island, in the late 1800s, when he was twelve years of age. As an adult, he worked as a laborer digging the tunnel to Five Mile Crib in Lake Erie. The younger McFadden was renowned for catching pickpockets and he had many encounters with Louie "The Dip" Finkelstein, Cleveland's best-known pickpocket. A well-respected police officer, his help as a bodyguard was requested from the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department for four presidential inaugurations. During an evening in 1963, McFadden spotted three individuals passing a store located at 1276 Euclid Avenue, near East 14th Street, convincing him they were planning a robbery. Not letting his age stand in his way - he was 62 years old - he confronted them, feeling two weapons while he frisked them. Single-handedly he maneuvered them into a shop, instructed the shopkeeper to call the police, while he arrested John W. Terry, Richard D. Chilton and Carl Katz. The case was turned down by several prosecutors, because they believed that the defendants' 4th amendment rights relating to unreasonable searches had been violated.

The United States Supreme Court had ruled earlier that evidence obtained via an illegal search could not be used as evidence. However, Judge Bernard Friedman determined that McFadden did have reasonable cause to believe that the men were armed, and ruled that police officers should be allowed to stop and search suspects. Louis Stokes, who later ran for the United States Congress, representing Terry and Chilton, failed to convince the appellate court in 1966 that the guns should not have been admitted as evidence. Stokes appealed to the Supreme Court in 1968. On June 10, 1968, the Supreme Court affirmed Terry's conviction. This result of this case gave police officers authority to stop and search citizens in the street. It is said that Terry v. Ohio is one of the most important cases in United States criminal law and is studied by every law student and police officer around the country.

From the guide to the Martin McFadden Papers, 1925-2003, (Western Reserve Historical Society)