The Savannah morning news., 1902-03-19
STAR WITNESS IMPEACHED.
And Superior Court Jury Turned
Pete Thompson Loose.


Pete Thompson Loose.
a jury in the Superior Court yes
terday morning acquitted Pete ThOmp-
son, the young white man indicted by
the grand jury for robbery by force
and intimidation. The indictment
charged that Thompson had relieved
D. 7. Woods Of $3.50. The aequittal
was due largely. If not entirely. to the
Impeachment OF the states star wit
ness.
Woods testified that on Feb. 10 ne
had come to Savannah for the purpose
OF turning over to the referee in bank
ruptcy $3.50. He was then engaged,
with the help of the bankruptcy court.
in getting rid of some old debts he
had found il impossible to pay in full
and the $3.50 was a part of his as
sets, which under the requirements Of
the law he had been instructed to turn
over to the trustee. He did not, how
ever, make the transfer. He swore that
on the night in question he had been
seeing the sights of the town with
thompson and some other parties. en-
tlced in the course of the evening into
Pacetu's bar, on Broughton street, west
of Barnard, was given such a quantity
OF whisky that he lost consciousness,
and while in that state, was relieved
Of his money by the versatile and
quick-fngered Thompson.
According TO the evidence Of the
proprietor of the saloon Woods had
not been allowed to suffer from thirst
while he was there, Thompson and his
ally Philadelphia named Murphy
being most enthusiastically active in
Keeping Woods glass filled with Whis-
key. Woods seems to have entered
into the scheme with great good will.
for they could not fill his glass much
quicker than he could empty it.
f. V. Pacetti related confession
made him by Thompson. in which that
ingenious individual is said to have
confided to the -'barkeep" that only
very small part of the money had
been expended and that a liberal share
Of the proceeds of the enterprise
would be his in return for his silence.
This was the evidence for the state.
That for the defense. in addition to the
statement of Thompson. who put up
an indignant denial of all completely
in the commission of the offense, was
practically made up of efforts to i'm
peach the evidence of Woods, that on
the whole were fairly satisfa Glory
This impeachment was doubtless re-
sponsible for the verdict of the jury.
There was meeting of the creditors
of Thompson on the morning of the
uight he was robbed, which was at the
office of the referee in bankruptcy,
Hon. A. II. MacDonell, and at this
hearing Thompson had been interrogat-
ed rather freely as to the amount and
character of his assets.
Judge MacDonell and John E
SchwarZ, the trustee for the bankrupt
both stated that at this hearing Woods
had testified that he had not brought
the $3.50 in money with him to Savan-
nah. but had left it locked in the
drawer of a bureau at his home in
Halcyondale. 1t was during the even
ing of the day on which he made this
statement that he claimed he was
robbed.
The defendant was represented by r.
L. Colding and r. NJ. Lester, and Mr..
Colding, in his argument to the jury,
made much of this contradiction in the
former statements of the prosecuting
witness. He argued also that if any
crime had been committed it was lar
ceny from the person and not robbery,
whether by force or intimidation.
These arguments seemed to have
weight with the jury, and the verdict
of not guilty followed. Thompson is
rather we'll known in Savannah, where
he has lived for several months. He
served as a member of Company B of
the Second Georgia during the war
with Spain.