The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1925-10-29
RELEASED
AFTER QUJIZZING
Five Hours of Questioning
Fail to Break Abb of
Former SuitOr.
Is ALLOWED TO RETURN
Coroner Friend Indicates In
quest in Double Murder May
Be Called Next Week.

Five hours of intensive questioning
here late Friday failed to shake the
abb of Howard L. Pratt, Milwaukee,
former sutton Of Madelynne Latimer,
and the mystery of the deaths of
Madelynne and her fiance, Jimmie
Sears, is as far from solution today as
it was on the day of the murder.
Every clue uncovered and every angle
brought to light by Sheriff Frank Will
lens, Coroner Joseph Friend, or the
police has failed thus far to develop
into anything that might lead to the
establishment of the identity of the
one or more persons who perpetrated
the brutal murder on North Rowland
avenue between the hours of mid
night and two o'clock week ago
Thursday morning.
Prat was brought to Kenosha Fri
day afternoon on subpoena issued by
Coroner Friend, and when he arrived
in the city he was Immediately taken
to the detective bureau in police head
quarters where he was questioned I'M
til seven o'clock in the evening.
The alleged discrepancies said to
have been found in the story given by
Pratt when he was first taken into Gus
tody here the day after the murder
were cleared up to the satisfaction of
the officials who did the quizzing.
Every minute of Pratt's movements
between the time several days before
the murder until he was taken into
custody in Milwaukee after the crime,
were tested and this investigation was
found to give the police no reason to
believe that Pratt had any actual part
in the Staying. Pratt's finger prints
were taken by Detective Sergeant Emil
Meissner and it was found that these
did not correspond with those found
on the Sears car in which the couple
were murdered. He was released at
1920 o'clock and allowed to return to
Milwaukee.
Pratt may be asked to return to Ke-
nosha to testify at the coroner's in
quest, but this is now considered i'm
probable since it is so definitely es-
tablished that Pratt had nothing to do
with the murder.
Coroner Friend indicated today that
he may call the formal inquest into the
double murders sometime next week.
He declared he would await the re-
turn of Jimmie Sears brothers, Carl
and Sam, from Ahoskie, N. c., where
they are spending week in looking
over the family plantation there. That
this inquest would not be called after
Tuesday was indicated when the cor
oner announced that he would hold the
inquest into the death of Bruno An
dreoli, who was shot to death week
after the death of Sears and Miss Lati-
mer, on Tuesday afternoon.
Sheriff Frank Willems today began
the work of mailing to every police
office and sheriff in the United States
a copy Of the reward offered by Keno
sha. coun,y for the capture Of the MUIR
derers. Tie notice reads: "S2,5O0 re-
ward will be paid for information
leading to the arrest and conviction of
the person or persons who murdered
James Sears and Madelynne Latimer
on Thursday morning, October ID,
1925, between twelve O'clock midnight
and two o'clock in the morning, on
the Rowland avenue road about one
fourth mile north Of the Birch road
in the county of Kenoshs, Wisconsin.
This reward is good for one year from
date"