Richmond daily register. (Richmond, Madison County, Ky.) 1917-1978, 1920-01-15
HUNTING MURDER
CLENS in MADISON
Lexington Officers Investigating
Effort To Poison Drummer
Later Shot To Death

Brown, Deputy Sheriff Forest Stivers,
= and County Detective John Ready,
of Fayette county and Detective
Dudley Veal, of Lexington, were in
Richmond Thursday morning, investi-
eating the peculiar circumstances
surrounding the poisoning of the late
J. S. Thomason, drummer for Win
chester firm, who was afterward
shot to death in Lexington by Jas.
Welch on crowded street on Christ
mas eve.
1t will be recalled that while on
his way from Winchester to Rich
mond in his car, Thomason picked up
4 man on the roadside, and invited
him to ride with him: tha the man
offered him q drink Of what purport-
ed to he whisky, which Thomason
drank, and the stranger than left the
car. Soon afterward Thomson be-
came deathly sick. He managed to
where he was placed in another car
and rushed to hospital here. He
was in a dangerous condition but his
life was saved after several days
treatment, and he returned to his
home in Lexington.
Christmas eve he was killed by
Welch, while Welch was talking to
Mrs. Thomason in their car Welch
claimed self defense.
A sensation came in the case last
week, however, when Mrs Thomason
was indicted for completely in the
murder Of her husband. Witnesses
have been found, the officials say,
who state that Welch was a frequent
visitor at the Thomason home during
the absence of the dead man. officers
are now working on suspicious that
q deliberate effort was made to
poison Thomason by Welch and
Thomason's wife, at the time he had
such a narrow escape on his way to
Richmond. An effort is being made
to learn the identity of the mysteri-
Gus stranger who rode with him and
gave him the doctored whisky that
came SO near killing him.
The Lexington officers planned to
get what information they could
from the nurse at the hospital here,
who waited on Thomason while he
was recovering from the whisky"
poisoning. They may also go to Red
House and talk TO the people there
who first gave him assistance, when
he drove up to a store in an almost
unconscious condition.
The Lexington Leader Wednesday
had the latest details of the senation-
al case, as follows:
The Leader Story
James WEIGH, who had been con-
fined to the county Jail since Dec. "a,
on a charge of numbering ]. S..
ThomasOn, was reticent today when
asked what he thought about the
joint Indictment returned Tuesday
against him and Mrs. Thomason, ac-
cusing beth of them with conspiring
to kill her husband.
The question was asked Welch if he
thought Mrs. Thomason was implicat-
ed in any way.
"I don't see how she could be", he
replied, az don't know what grounds
they are working on." Then he added
he had repeatedly said he would not
make any statement for publication.
'Then you think she was innocent %
he was asked.
81 am not thinking, was the
reply "See my attorney" And with
that WEIGH walked back into the cell
The biggest sensation in the Thorn
ason murder since the actual killing
came late Tuesday afternoon when q
bench warrant charging both Mrs
Thomason and Welch with murder
was read to her at the courthouse by
Deputy Sheriff w. Malcolm Brown.
Mrs. Thomason, when asked for 6
statement of her side of the case, re-
piled, 81 haven't any side. l dom
care to discuss it,. Her two infant
children, aged about three and five
years respectively, were sitting OF
her lap at the time.
The Commonwealth agreed to allow
Mrs Thomason bail and she was re
leased under $4,000 bond signed b!
e. L. Martin. Hunter declared tn,
fact the Commonwealth agreed to al
low bond in murder case was evi
dence of a lack of proof.
Circuit Judge Charles Kerr set tn
trial of Mrs. Thomason for 8 o'clocl
Monday morning. Welch, when in
dicted week ago, also had his tria
set for the same time.