Biography
Thomas Aiken, an unemployed Harlem worker of 411 Convent Avenue, was beaten by police at the 142nd Street and Fifth Avenue Armory breadline on March 13, 1935. James W. Ford testified that officers struck him unconscious and took him to Harlem Hospital prison ward under arrest; three days later his sister was refused access. This establishes at least three days actual hospital custody, not a complete three-day term. No charge or release endpoint is stated. Source: https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/dailyworker/1935/v12-n095-NAT-apr-20-1935-DW-Q.pdf#page=5
Sources
James W. Ford’s published testimony places Aiken in the Harlem Hospital prison ward under arrest on March 13, 1935, after officers struck him at the Armory breadline. This establishes hospital custody, not a sentence. Actual release remains unverified.
