Evening star., 1945-09-04
S Held After Boy, IS,
Is Fatally Shot in
Riot at Manassas
Special Dispatch to The Star.

| special Dispatch to The Star.
| MANASSAS, Va, Sept. 4.-Five
colored men faced charges of in.
citing riot here today as a result
OF a Labor Day disturbance at a
horse show staged by colored people
in which one colored man was
killed, deputy sheriff beaten and
stabbed and the sheriff knocked tc
the ground and beaten.
State troopers, police from Arling-
ton and Fairfax and military police
were summoned to quell the dis
order, which occurred after three
peace officers attempted to seize a
car containing several gallons OF
moonshine whisky.
Shot in the head during the melee
Arvine Lacy, IS, colored of Marshall
Va, died at $40 pm, about two
hours later, in Alexandria Hospital
State Trooper P. P. Herndon, one OF
the officers who attempted to seize
the whisky, said the boy was hit by
one Of several shots fired wildly in
the crowd.
| Held in Inciting Riot
Stanley A. Owens, Prince William
! County Commemorative attorney
said the five were charged with
melting riot, threatening an officer
and interfering with an officer In
the discharge of his duties. They
will appear tomorrow before Justice
c. Lacey Compton in Trial Justice
Court and will be held for the Oc-
tober grand jury if probable cause
for indictment is shown.
| Held in the Prince William
County Jail were Roosevelt Pruitt,
%, of the 1700 block of New Jersey
avenue NV, and Willie Shelling-
ton. 40, of the 1900 block of Cali
fornia street NV. Three others
were released on 81 1000 bond each
They are Edwin Gaskins, Manas-
sas; Landon Braxton, As, of The
Plains and John Phillips, Manassas
Mr.. Owens said the country was
anxious to apprehend all persons
involved but feared it would be diff
ficult to identify the others.
| , Were Answering Complaint.
Trooper Herndon said he went to
the fairgrounds, where several
thousand colored people we're at
tending the annual show, with
Sheriff J. P. Kerlin and Deputy
Turner D. Wheeler in answer to a
complaint about the whisky.
When they sought to take the car
away with a wrecker, the crowo
began milling around and Deputy
Sheriff Wheeler became involved ir
tussle, Trooper Herndon said. The
deputy was beaten to the ground
and stabbed in the back and Gu,
about the head, it was said.
Sheriff Kerlin said that in his ef-
forts to help Mr.. Wheeler, he, too
was knocked to the ground anc
beaten and his gun taken from him
Suffering from 3-inch stab wounC
over the left kidney, Mr.. Wheeler
was not seriously injured and was
later taken to his home.
Troopers, Soldiers Aid.
Both the sheriff and Trooper
Herndon said they broke away anc
rushed to the police station to cal
reinforcements. They said about Il
State troopers, Is civilian policemen
and 100 MP's and soldiers from Vint
Hill, an Army camp near Warren
ton, responded.
! The crowd began to scatter wher
the additional policemen arrived
and by 9 o'clock, two and one-hali
hours after the trouble began, State
troopers locked the fairgrounds
gates.
i Trooper Herndon said the horse
show was sponsored annually by
colored people. He said the COM
plant about the load of whisky
came from some persons attending
/ the show.