The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1921-05-17
CUMMINGS UPH0LDS
 SHELTON ATTORNEY
 ON WRECK DECISION
Will Not Issue Warrants for Gar Conductor or Judge Palmer-Does Not Believe Law Coroner Quoted in Finding Was Meant to Cover Case.

NConcurring with the views o I Prosecuting attorney Curnias of Shelton, States attorney Homer s. Cum mings will not ask for the is suance of bench warrants for either conductor George Robinson or Judge Stephen T. Palmer of Shelton, prom inently mentioned in the trolley wreck at South SheI- ton on the afternoon of Washington's birthday last. The collision between two Connecticut company trol- leys was fatal to ten persons and several of the injured are still in hospitals.
 Coroner PheIan is IauteG 5n a lengthy statement read by the States attor- ney shortly after noon today at the opening of the session of Superior criminal court, before Judge William NJ. Maltbie. The law by which the
 
 the holding of Judge Palmer is quoted:
 Every person who shall knowingly have in his possession any package of n1troslycerine, gunpowder, naptha or other equally explosive material, not marked with d plain and legible label describing it's contents, or who shall remove any such label or mark, or shall knowingly deliver to any car rler any such package. without such h1 ten thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than five years"
 The States attorney does not be GeVe that this law was meant to cover 3 case such as this. Ii will be recalled that Judge Palmer was a passenger on the car at the time having gone for can of gasoline. which was placed upon the platform. The force of the collision caused the fluid to explode, and the fumes, rather than the subsequent fire caused the deaths of Motornan Milton Cherritree of the Southbound car, and nine of the pas sengers-
 It is pointed out that if the law were to be taken as the coroner view ed 1t. that every automobile owner is violating the law by having q gaso- lne tank, containcr, as part of his automobile.
 The States attorney has made an exhaustive review of the case, the sum ming of which covers r close " IypGW11tJen pages He does not wish to blame the dead motorman, neither does he believe that a jury would convict conductor Robinson. for the evidence is so cOntradictory and so dependent upon mere minutes and seconds. registered by various watches, not in accord with one an other, that it is entirely within the realm of possibility that the crews of both cars turned the light at the same time, making each think that the right of way was theirs.
 Beause of this situation, and the fact that the cars were operated so carefully that no deaths would have occurred but for the gasoline, it is stated that it would be difficuIt, if not impossible, to place criminal re- sponsEff1ity in the sense of man against the Connecticut company or any of it's servants.
 The can of gasoline caused the ca tastrophe, but believing that no con viction could be obtained, because of the human elements of the case, Judge Palmer doing just what the average person would have done un- der the circumstances, the states at torney writes the final chapter in the case as far as the state is concerned, when he signs the statement read in court today