Los Angeles herald., 1909-07-18
JUDGE SCORES
SPEED MANIACS
AUTO DEALER SENTENCED TO
THIRTY DAYS IN JAIL
MAN WHO STRUCK PEDESTRIAN
CONVICTED OF BATTERY
r. w. Mattoon, Who Ran Down Ce-
nent Contractor, Given Lecture
by court-Trsl Fought
Bitterly

r. w. Mattoon, an automobile dealer,
living at 1927 Cambria street, who ran
over and painfully injured 5. w. Pen
rod, a cement contractor of 1919 Ell
Molino street, after the latter had
alighted from a street car at Pico ana
Eel Molino streets at 10 o'clock at night,
July 6, and who was arrested by Pa
trolman G. r. McMurray after chase
of nearly two miles, was found guilty
by Police Justice Chambers yesterday
and sentenced to serve thirty days IN
the city Jail on a charge of battery:
The trial was hard fought from the
start between the attorney for Nation
and Deputy District Attorney Arthur
Keeth When Mattoon was ad1udged
guilty, Keeth recommended straight
Jail sentence.
When sentence had been pronounced,
Mattoon, through his attorney, made
motion for a new trial. This motion
was denied by Justice Chambers. The
attorney for Mattoon then gave no
tice of appeal and filed a bond of $500
pending this action. Mattoon then was
released.
In giving his reasons for overruling
the motion for a new trial, Justice
Chambers gave the definition of bat
terry under the state statute, and said:
Automobiles Dangerous
'An automobile is a machine of con-
siderable weight and power and capable
of making great speed That fact
makes it a dangerous thing on a pub
lie highway, but it does not give 1t
prior right over other vehicles for that
reason.
'It would seem that practice or
sentiment has grown up to the effect
that when a dangerous machine, such
as an automobile, is passing along the
streets, pedestrians and vehicles must
get out of the way, or they must be on
the lookout for them at their peril [
don't think that is good law; l don't
think it is the law. l think it is in
cumbent on the driver of any machine
of great speed and power to so con-
troll it as to avoid accidents, just as
much as it is the duty, perhaps, for
the other people to look out for the
machine.
"Tbat being the ease l don't believe 1t is
the law that an automobile has any right of
way over any other vehicles or pedestrians
and it is the duty of the automobile driver
to have his machine under sufficient control
i'm order to avoid accidents. In fact, a
person driving a machine Of great weight
speed and power, seems to me should be
under greater obligations to keep that car
within such bounds of speed as Is consistent
with the safety of other people using the
highway.
Speed Sometimes Permissible
''Of course where there are no OBJ
structions and the driver is driving
his machine on a street where there
are not many people he may be Justl-
fed in going at a greater rate OF
speed than he would on street where
there are street crossings, where there
are many vehicles, or where there are
many pedestrians. But at street cross
ings, particularly the drivers of these
machines should exercise the greatest
care in slowing down and in observing
the movements of passengers or pedes-
trians, otherwise an injury to some one
is frequently unavoidable.
"The mere fact that there is speed
limit of twenty miles hour in certain
districts in the city does not mean that it is
the duty of the driver of these machines to
maintain that speed, yet that seems TO be
the impression which many drivers have.
From the evidence in this case I
am satisfied that this machine was go
ing at such a rate of speed as was in
consistent with the safety of people
using the highway. 1t is true that
there is considerable conflict as to the
rate of speed, as there always is in
cases of this kind, but, from all the
evidence in the case, l am convinced
that the driver of this machine was
going too fast when this young man
Penrod was hit.
Street Car Not Speeding
THE testimony OF the car crew
shows that for a number of blocks be-
fore it reached El Molino street 1t
had not passed any automobiles or any
one on that side of the street, notwith-
standing the statements of the occu-
pants of the automobile that the street
car was going at top speed of some
where between twenty and thirty miles
an hour.
Il think from the testimony the au-
tor,nbila clp 4 q the
man was struck, but it went on at
greater rate of speed afterward, l am
convinced, the motorman testify
ing that he endeavored to over
take it in order to learn the
number, but could not do SO. I'm
der all the facts in this case it is the
opinion of the court that a degree of
negligence was manifest as to show will
full intent as required by the statute"
H. D. Cameron, mOtOrman, a witness
in this case, who failed to appear when
his name was called during the trial
Friday afternoon, appeared in court
yesterday morning and was fined $40
for contempt of court.