John Clifford “Jack” Greene
- Cincinnati Police Detective
- Hamilton County Welfare Department Chief Investigator
Jack was born April 1, 1918, in Cincinnati, the last of three children born to John Dawson and Della “Dolly” (Ellers) Greene, originally of West Virginia. He attended Western Hills High School, played half back on the football team, and graduated in 1937. After high school, he played soccer for the then famous New Era Café and boxed at the Holy Family Gymnasium. In a Gold Gloves match, he boxed Ezzard Charles, future heavyweight champion.
PATROLMAN
In 1941, Jack was among two thousand applicants who turned out for the Cincinnati Police Department’s 7th Recruit Class. He was one of 40 who earned a seat on October 1, 1941. Six weeks later, Recruit Greene was assigned to complete his training at District 5 (3478 Colerain Avenue). He was involved in his first of many battles, a bar fight, a month later, sending two to the hospital. He was promoted to Patrolman on January 1, 1942.
VICE SQUAD
He made an instant impression on his commanders and chief. Less than three years later, on July 5, 1944, he was assigned to the Vice Squad. He would never wear a police uniform again. On the 28th, 23 days after his assignment, he arrested a bookie at a Cigar Shop 3418 Burnet. He made four bets with another bookie in September 1944. In October 1944, he arrested three in a café on University Avenue. He made another gambling arrest at James Abrams Café in November 1944, and in December arrested a woman carrying horse betting slips in her purse on Gest Street. For six months, he was the scourge of gamblers everywhere in Cincinnati. His name appeared in newspapers 52 times.
WORLD WAR II
On January 19, 1945, during World War II, Patrolman Greene was inducted into the United States Navy. He took training as an Apprentice Seaman at the Great Lakes Naval Center. He was then assigned to Security at Great Lakes and at Camp Shoemaker in California at the United States Bureau of Naval Prisons. At least twice, he returned to Cincinnati on leave to testify in his previous arrests. Seaman Second Class Greene was honorably discharged six months after the war on March 18, 1946.
RETURN TO VICE SQUAD
He was back at work on April 22, 1946, arresting a Reading Road restaurant owner for paying off on a pinball machine. By October, he and Lytle Young teamed up in a partnership that would last almost 15 years. On October 26, 1946, they uncovered a kidnapping and robbery while conducting a gambling investigation. The suspect pulled a nickel-plated revolver, but Greene overpowered him. They investigated a drug dealer in November and ended up arresting him and a woman with burglar tools, morphine, and hypodermic needles. On December 3, 1946, they arrested a man for carrying concealed weapons at a café on McMillan and had to fight the man when he resisted. The man fought him again at the stationhouse.
Once again, he was a terror to gamblers, but they also conducted narcotics investigations. On February 11th, they arrested a man with morphine and held them for Federal authorities. During a raid on February 17th, the perpetrators threw two policy slip pads into a furnace and Detective Greene was burned while reaching in and pulling out the charred remains for evidence. On May 15th, they arrested a man with morphine and hypodermic needles who was on parole from a Federal hospital in Lexington.
On June 10, 1947, the detectives were so stealthy in their raid at 1346 Vine Street, the bookie, who was alone, did not even know they were in the same room with him. Then, when the phone rang, Detective Greene answered and took the bet. The bookie was arrested. On June 18, 1947, they happened to be near a café burglary at Hamilton and Palm that had just occurred. They took the description of the culprits and found one, who was armed when he was arrested. Eventually, all four were arrested and found to be wanted for other burglaries and robberies, as far away as Kansas. On July 24, 1947, they arrested another man at 217 W. 5th Street with narcotics and hypodermic needles and held the man for Federal authorities. On October 23, 1947, they arrested a dealer for possession of 3½ pounds of marijuana at 927 Gest Street.
By January 1949, they had been deputized as Special Agents of the Hamilton County Sheriff Dan Tehan and assisted other smaller agencies in the County with their investigations. By July, they were working with Federal authorities and conducting raids. On July 7th, a raid resulted in three arrests for morphine and hypodermic needles. Eight days later, a raid resulted in one arrest and 30 pounds of marijuana. The next day, another arrest for morphine and hypos. Then on July 26th, they arrested a woman with $26,000 (almost $350,000 in 2024 dollars) in narcotics stolen from a Columbus hospital. Still working gambler, in August, they raided and arrested three at the “Numbers Racket Headquarters” at 744 W. 7th Street.
By 1950, Cincinnati Police Chief Weatherly assigned them to the city’s first Narcotics Squad, and they continued to work with Federal agencies, while also working on gambling establishments where much of the narcotics was being sold. In June, 1950, they started going after doctors who were criminally dispensing narcotics. They arrested nine people on June 20th, including one physician, and four more on the 22nd from the same investigation. In July, they arrested another doctor. On April 20, 1951, a raid with Federal authorities resulted in eight arrests, one hundred policy slips, fifty shoplifted suits and dresses, and narcotics and hypodermic needles. Two days later, they arrested a marijuana dealer with 105 cigarettes. By then, Detectives Greene and Young had been mentioned as partners over 150 times in the newspapers.
HOMICIDE
By 1951, they were the Department’s top anti-narcotics men. But Police Chief Schrotel determined that the three-man Homicide Squad needed four more detectives and to investigate serious assault cases. On September 30, 1951, both Green and Young were promoted to Detective. Detective Greene was issued Badge D-15, and both were assigned to the Homicide Squad.
Detective Greene solved his first case in February when he arrested a man and his son for murdering another man over a car deal. Chief Schrotel commended his work, considering there were no witnesses, but still a quick resolution. The next day, he solved his second, arresting a wife for shooting her husband five times. On April 16th, he solved the murder of a woman by her boyfriend.
By the time Detective Young retired in 1964, the detective duo had another 103 mentions in newspapers, all for homicides, kidnappings, very serious assaults, and other heinous crimes. By the time Detective Green retired, he had another 87 mentions.
On July 15, 1956, his commander, Lieutenant Charles Martin, praised his capabilities, dependability, and willingness to work. Martin considered him proficient in photography and highly interested in the scientific aspects of criminal investigations. During 1958 and 1959, Chief of Detectives Henry Sandman three times commented on Detective Greene’s crime scene investigations at homicides, knowledge of his job, and getting results. Beginning in 1952, the Division started rating an employee’s performance on a scale of 1 to 100. His 26 evaluations were never below 90, and ten times were 95 or 96. Also in 1952, the Division began tracking letters of appreciation and/or commendation. He earned 18 until the end of his career, including ten from the Police Chief, one from the J. Edgar Hoover, and another from Vice President Richard M. Nixon.
Detective Greene retired on May 15, 1970 with 28 years of CPD service. He then joined the Hamilton County Welfare Department as its first Chief Investigator.
EPILOGUE
Detective Greene’s sons also joined law enforcement. Cincinnati Police Specialist Jack E. Greene and Cincinnati Police Officer Danny P. Greene both left in 1982 after long careers to other occupational opportunities. Cincinnati Police Officer Brian Greene retired from the Department and still serves as a Hamilton County Common Pleas Bailiff. Another son, Deputy Sheriff Dennis Greene worked for Hamilton County. David A. Greene joined the Cincinnati Police Division as a Police Cadet, but was laid off with 150 other law enforcement in 1976 and did not return. And, Detective Greene’s daughter, Patricia, married a Cincinnati Police Officer.