Watertown leader. [volume] (Watertown, Jefferson County, Wis.) 1909-1911, 1909-08-13
SUTTON SLAIN,
NOT A SUICIDE,
SAYS WITNESS
CORPORAL OF GUARD ON THE NIGHT
OFFICER WAS SHOT TELLS
GRAPHIC STORY.
WILL so TESTIFY, IF CALLED.
Lieuts. Adams and OSterman Recognized
as Victims Companions in Quar-
rel Preceding Crime.
LIEUT.. ROELKER IS EXONERATED

BOSTON, Mass, Aug 10-In a state
ment attributed to Sergt Arthur Todd
of the United States marine corps. and
made public today in the Boston Post,
it is said that if he should be called to
testify in the investigation of the death
of Lieut.. James Sutton, the sergeant's
testimony would be exactly opposite to
that given by Sutton's fellow officers.
Sergt. Todd who has been on range duty
at W aketield, left for Annapolis. In de-
Scrlblng the shooting Sergt Todd says:
| was corporal of the guard on the
night that Lieut.. Sutton was shot and
from the place where l was standing /
saw figure about $50 feet away.
Saw Adams and Osterman.
= saw Lieuts. Adams and Osterman
and recognized them. They were nearer
me. The man who was III shirt sleeves
started to run, and | heard a voice cry:
Stop running! You're under arrest
The man ran on, and once more |
heard the same voice cry out loudly:
Stop running or I'll shoot!
The man paid no attention and ran
on. The next moment 1 saw flash, and
heard a revolver report. There were
three other shots, and the man who was
running dropped"
Il ran over to him and bent over.
II was Lieut.. Sutton. l saw a hole in
his forehead, where there was a ragged
entrance, and hole back of the left ear
where the bullet came out clean.
Lieut.. Rocker, who has been so often
mentioned in the case. came into the
guard room where | then was, a short
time before the shooting. He was with a
private named Richardson and they had
a drink together. At the time of the
shooting he was not anywhere in sight.
Mot a Carvice Pevolver
''The next morning an enlisted man
found a revolver on the ball field, which
was not the regular service revolver, but
a 32-caliber affair"
Todd sail at one time in conversation
that he hal the bullet himself that killed
Sutton, but later stated that someone
else had taken it. He refused to state
finally whether he knew where the bullet
was.
Just after the shooting, when l had
returned to the guardrOom, Rocker came
in all out of breath and greatly excited.
He said: My God, Archie, L think I've
been shot
Il laughed at him at first, but he was
so earnest about it that | felt in his left
hand outside pocket just over his heart.
There was a drill regulation book there
and a bullet had become mushroomed i'll
the pages.
Bullet Strikes Near Heart
"Roelker was very excited when
pulled out the book and showed him the
buI.et and the way in which his life had
been saved. He stripped down to the
skin and there was a perceptible reddish
tinge over his heart, showing just where
the bullet would have gone had the book
not iEterposed
Rocker ard l talked the matter
over, and we agreed that he must have
run into the fire of the bullets one of
which had killed Sutton. There were
four shots that | heard in all and one
Of them. am convinced, struck Rocker
Il have wondered more than once why
l have not been called to go before the
court of inquiry and tell what | know"