by Anita Susan Brenner
In November 1947, 20 men invaded the home of Hugh Hardyman during a meeting of the Crescenta-Cañada Democratic Club. The home invaders, who wore American Legion hats, threatened Hardyman and his guests.
When the police arrived at Hardyman’s La Crescenta home, the Legionnaires explained that the Democrats were Communists, an apparently convincing argument to the police. There were no arrests of the intruders.
Hardyman, a self-described retired fruit grower and a founding member of the American Civil Liberties Union, was incensed. The next day, he began to make the rounds of the local radio stations. He described the home invasion, the lack of law enforcement interest.
He also identified the culprits. Many of the Legionnaires wore hats bearing the number of Glendale Post 127.
The story spread. National newspapers began to cover the situation.
That’s when Sheriff Biscaluz got interested in the investigation.
All over the country, people began to follow the story. Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling heard the radio broadcasts. Years later, his archivists would find transcripts of Hardyman’s radio interviews and related news clippings in Pauling’s papers.
Orville F. Collins, commander of Glendale Post No. 127, issued a press release stating: “It is my understanding that individual members of the American Legion, acting independently of the American Legion, attended an open meeting of the Crescenta-Cañada Democratic club. Although it is common knowledge that the American Legion is strongly anti-Communistic, direct action of this type was not authorized by post officials.”
Famous last words.
Less than a week later, Collins was identified as one of the culprits, along with H.C. Burkheimer, then the publisher of the Glendale News-Press.
Twenty-one defendants went to trial in December. The trial, which was before a judge, not a jury, lasted seven days.
After much hullabaloo, the defense attorneys were permitted to cross-examine prosecution witnesses on their politics.
“Are you a Communist?”
“Are you a Red?”
“No,” said one eyewitness, “I’m a Democrat.”
A reporter testified for the defense — some of the defendants were news reporters who were merely reporting on the news. This testimony was of little use to Glendale News-Press publisher H.C. Burkheimer, who allegedly punched one of Hardyman’s guests.
None of the defendants testified. There were no other defense witnesses.
At the end, the trial judge acquitted the photographers and an editor, but Burkheimer was convicted and fined, along with 12 Legionnaires.
Their crime? Disturbing the peace.
Anita Susan Brenner is a longtime La Canada Flintridge resident. She is an attorney with Law Offices of Torres and Brenner in Pasadena.
