The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1915-07-29
MUST PAY DAMAGES TOO
Racine Man ) Father Pleads With Court
and Amount Paid Is the Limit That
Gould Be Assessed Under State Law
Prison for Second offense.


Charles Thompson, a Racine man,
pleaded guilty to charges of speed
ing in the municipal court this morn
ing and paid fine of one hundred
dollars and the costs Of the action.
Thompson is the man who is alleged to
have been responsible for the serious
accident to Motorcycle Deputy Fritz
Rudy on the road just north of the
sanitarium on Monday night, but.
Thompson, who was decidedly penitent
this morning, declared that he had no
idea Of injuring Rudy and that he had
no idea that he had been injured I'M
til he heard the facts in the case long
after the accident.
Thompson was arrested in Racine
late Tuesday afternoon by Sheriff An
drew Stahl and brought to the county
jail here. He admitted to the sheriff
that he had ruthlessly violated the law
in regard to the speed limit, but APP
peared to be greatly surprised when he
was told that Rudy had been severely
injured and his motorcycle wrecked
as result of the efforts of Thompson
to avoid arrest.
Thompson is carpenter and the son
Of a well known Racine contractor.
His father came to Kenosha this
morning after Thompson had spent the
night in the county jail and made a
strong plea for the release of the boy.
He appeared to be willing to pay any
fine that the court might set and also
was agreeable TO paying the expeIs
attending the repair of the RUNE,
motorcycle. District Attorney Drury
spent several hours making an invea-
tigation Of the laws governing the case
and found that there were but two
charges on which Thompson could be
held. One was speeding in which the
limit fine would be two hundred dollars
and costs, and the other was resisting
an officer Thompson insisted that
he did not know that Rudy was an
officer, but in the same breath he adj
mitted that he was running away from
arrest. He asserted to the district at
torney that he had no idea of the in
jury to Rudy. Thompson after the ac-
cident had taken one Of the west roads
to Racine and he was at his home
shortly after nine o'clock and the
members Of the family did not know
that he was sought by the sheriff until
Stahl went to Racine on Tuesday
afternoon.
Rudy was in court when the case
was called and he declared his willing
ness to sign a complaint against
Thompson as a "speeder,o but the
sheriff insisted that before Thompson
be allowed to plead to this charge that
provision be made for the repair Of
the motorcycle and to pay the doctor s
bill for Rudy. Tt was estimated that
hundred dollars would cover all of
the charges and the father Of Thomp-
son promptly turned this amount over
to the district attorney Then Thomp-
son went before Judge Taylor and
pleaded guilty to speeding and the
court imposed a fine Of one hundred
dollars and the costs of the action,
holding that the amount which the
father had previously deposited to pay
the damages of the accident would
bring the total up to the full limit of
the law Thompson was warned that
if he was brought into court again on
a charge of speeding that he must not
expect to get away without Jail
sentence.
The Wisconsin state law does not
provide jail sentence for the first of
tense against speeders, but on the sec
ond offense the defendant may be
punished by both fine and imprison-
ment
Thompson and his father both seem.
ed to be glad to get out of the scrape
even though it cost them close to two
hundred and twenty-five dollars.