The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1907-02-27
ATTEMPTED RAPE.
LOuehridge Byrne Arrested Monday on
This Grave Charge.

ms GfdVe Charge.
Loughridge Byrne, a young
man of this city, about II or is,
was arrested Monday morning by
Policeman Meter on the charge
of attempting a criminal assault
on Miss Lee Ann Myers, young
lady from franklin county, the
might before.
The principal facts and circum-
stances in regard to the assault, as
thus far made known seem to be
about as follows:
Miss Lee Ann Myers, a young
country girl from Franklin coun-
Ity, who gave her age to a reporter
of this paper as 16 years, came to
Brookhaven Sunday, accompanied
|by her little brother 4 years old
and q young man about 81 named
Tully Williams, in order to meet
her older sister, who was expect
ed on a Mississippi Central train
from Prentiss, where she had
been visiting.
From some cause the sister fail
ed to arrive when expected, and,
as the party from Franklin coun-
ty were sitting in the depot wait
ing room about 5 O'Clock IN very
unsettled state of mind as to what
to do, young Byrne, it is alleged,
who had approached theu and in
troduced himself, informed them
that they could not remain in the
depot after 10 o'clock, and offered
to help them look up lodging
place, which seeming kindness was
thankfully accepted.
The young man Williams states
that Byrne first carried him to
Mr.. John Wright's boarding
house and paid for his lodging, at
the same time explaining that
Wright could not accommodate
the girl and her little brother,
and that he (Byrne) would carry
them to his own home, as all the
hotels and boarding houses were
crowded.
Williams, who seems to be
very simple minded and credulous
sort of a person, says he never
suspected anything w1ung what
ever, and believed he was leaving
the girl in safe hands.
Afterward Byrne is alleged to
have returned to the depot, car
ried Miss Myers and her little
brother to an unfrequented street
several blocks from the depot un-
der the pretense of carrying her
to lodging place, and, as she
alleges, then attempted to crimi-
naIly assault her. She resisted
and threatened to scream, when
he 5desisted, but afterward threat
enes-heF, if she told what had
happened.
She then returned to the depot
with her little brother as best she
could and meeting Policeman
Meter there, told the story of
her wrong and gave the best de-
scription of Bryne that she could,
not knowing his real name.
She and her little brother we're
taken by Mr.. Meter to the Inez
Hotel, where they were kindly
cared for until next day.
Looking up the young man
Williams and getting a statement
from him also, Mr.. Meter finally
decided that the description and
other circumstances fitted Lough-
ridge Byrne and SO about 10,
O'Clock Monday Bryne was arrest
ed and carried before Miss Myers
and the young man Williams at
the Inez Hotel for Identification.
Both of them very promptly iden-
titled him as the young man they
had the experience with the night
before.
Later in the day, Byrne was
carried before Mayor Lanier and
released on $1,000 bond for his
appearance the next Friday.
There has been great deal of
suppressed indignation in the city
over the affair and a desire to
have the case fully investigated.