The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1917-09-06
JAIL SENTENCE
AND FINES FOR
SPEEDING AUTO
o. A. STATLER HANDED STIFF sAS-
TENcE AFTER TRIAL BEFORE
SQUIRE HOBBS
Takes Appeal and Furnishes $500 Bona
Prosecution Resulted PROM
Wreck out-the-Pike


charge Of driving his automobile on the
National Pike I'm the vicinity Of Alien
helm Sunday might. al a rate OF speed
exceeding IS miles an hour: On
charge of driving on the wrong side OF
the pike. Mr.. Statler was fined s25. He
gave bond in the sum of 5000 Tor an
appeal To the criminal court. The
charges against Mr.. Statlcr were the
outgrowth Of the accident near the
Flaccus homestead late Sunday night, in
which Mr.. Statlcrs big Mercer roadster
collided with Chalmers car driven by
Wilbur Wallace. Of Bethany Pike.
The hearing wns conducted In the
trial room Of the Ohio county jail.
Prosecuting Attorney D. y. Mckee had
charge Of the prosecution. aided by As
sistant Prosecutor Carl G. Bachman. At
torney W. T. Robinson represented the
defendant. The prosecution offered
the testimony of seven witnesses. Only
the evidence Of Mr.. Statlcr himself was
submitted for the defense.
State witnesses estimated the speed At
which Mr. Statler was driving his road
stcr just before the collision at ms hign
as so to 10 miles an hour. Wilbur Wal
lace. driver OF the other car which fig
ured In the wreck. testified that the
Statlcr machine was approaching ut
very high rate of speed when he saw
1t coming over the brow Of Chickens
neck HILL and that when 1t hit his ma
chine he Judged. 1t was running IS or
40 miles an hour. He had time to do
nothing more than apply his brakes. he
said. from the time he saw the Statler
car coming until the crash occurred.
On Left-Hand Side Of Road
T. w. krammer, of Woodsdale, who
arrived just after the accident. told OF
seeing marks on the pike for distance
of 10 steps Of about feet each. which
looked as though they were made by the
rear wheels of the Mercer sliding be-
cause Of set brakes for that distance be-
fore the crash occurred. The Mercer
he said. was on its lcft-hand side OF tho
road when the collision took place, judy
Ing from the damage TO the machines.
Mr.. Wallace had testified to this effect.
Ralph Meyer. Of Pittsburgh, testified
Of seeing the accident from the porch
of the Flaccus home. The crash hap
pened about n half square below the
| house, he said. II should judge the
Mercer was running so miles an hour
when I first saw IT," he said It seemed
to be on the right side Of the pike at
first. then the driver apparently pulled
| 10 llt iell dS IC lIIcu " UGSS VIC car
| going out (the Wallace carr. He said he
heard the noise evidently made by the
application Of the brakes Of the Mer-
Ger. and the sliding Of the tires. The
Mercer tried to pass the Chalmers on
the left. he testified. the cars crashed.
and the Mercer went on and turned
over.
Albert c. Whitaker was the star Wit
. Ia mi, hn cuiH
two to five minutes after the accident.
He estimated the marks on the asphalt
paving which he thought were made
by the tires Of the Mercer car. from the
! point where the brakes were set to the
scene of the crash at from 100 to 10
| feet. The distance between the Wal
lace car as he SAW IT and the point
where he saw the Statler roadster. he
estimated at 125 or 1870 feet. Marks
where the wheels OF the Statler car had
cut in the bank after the collision before
turning over. he said were six or seven
inches deep at the most. Mr.. Whitaker
said that he has been driving a car for
ten years and that from his observa-
lions of the whecl-marks of the Mercer.
Mr.. Statler must havcs been driving
from so to 70 miles an hour.
Guy Bcry told Of Mr. Statler's pass
Ing him on the cast side Of Chicken
neck hill and some time was spent In
bringing out the comparative rate of
, speed of the Statlcr machine with his
own. which he said was running Is or
16 miles an hour when Mr.. Statlcr pass
cd him.
Sheriff Hastings testified Of the tire
marks which he found on the paving
the day following the accident and of
the patches in the tires Of Mr. Statlcr's
machine. which looked as though they
had becn burned, or torn out by the
wheels sliding.
Mr.. Statler's Version
When placed on the stand in his own
behalf. Mr.. Sta;lcr testified that he did
not believe he was running faster than
o5 or - miles an hour on tho hill when
he passed Bcry. He couldn't 20 faster
at that point, he said. AS he approach
cd the F'laccus place he said. there was
! n car on tho right hand side going OUT.
with tho lights very dim. He did not
attempt TO pass it on the left he said,
but applied his brakes. The street
was Shiny from the hard rain early in
The evening he said. and tho arplica-
tlon Of the brakes caused his car to
skid. finally shooting him toward the
left side Of the road directly in front
of til" Wallace machine. He coult
have done nothing more than apply the
brakes. h" said. Both Wallace and him
self. Mr.. Statlcr Snid. were hugging fair
~ close Ia the center of tho asphalt por-
ton Of the roadway. other wise it
would not have hccu necessary for him
to apply his brakes and the accident
would not have occurred.
III ! WAS going So miles mn hour at
ALL he said. lit was after I put on my
brakes. causing my car to skid"
The trial went through to the end
without tho identity Of the lady who
was Mr.. Stntlcr's companion in the car
being revealed. Both Mr.. Whitaker and
Ralph Meyer told Of seeing her and OF
her refusing prnffcred assistance ano
keeping her face concealed.
| In presenting the arguments for the
state. Prosecuting Attorney D. A. Nc
Kcc asked for both n fine and imprs-
onment for tn" defendant. After review
inG the testimony and reading sections
of the now road law applying to the
case he said;
Here is a case. if there ever was
ono. that merits both the fine and jail
sentence and in. justice and In sense Of
duty bound. 7 nm asking IT,"