Elk-Butler County KS Archives News.....ELK COUNTY SHERIFF SHOOTS AND KILLS MAN September 12, 1929 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ks/ksfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: L Morgan blueduck3248@totelcsi.com July 21, 2007, 1:51 pm Howard Courant September 12, 1929 J. D. Ellsworth of Latham, With 15 Gallons of Alcohol, Resists Arrest. Sheriff W. P. Brown of Elk County, working under a straight tip, took Bate Hamar and Harry Leckliter, his deputies, and headed off J. D. Ellsworth, suspected of being a booze transporter. It was a short time after dusk, Sunday evening, about 8 o'clock and they stopped Ellsworth's car on the public road 12 miles northwest of Howard. Leckliter covered the suspect with his revolver and told him to consider himself under arrest. Instead of sticking 'em up, Ellsworth, reached for Leckliter's gun, pushing it to one side and with the other hand apparently reached for his own gun. The sheriff who was on the other side of the car, believing that Ellsworth would quickly began shooting fired point blank at his body, and the man fell forward in the car. The men took charge of his pistol, a 38-calibre, large frame gun, and also found about 15 gallons of alcohol and some other liquor in the car. Ellsworth who was shot through the body was brought to Howard and examined by Drs. DePew and Grimmell. They gave him first aid treatment and advised that he be taken to the Wichita hospital. He appeared to be suffering a good deal, and didn't talk much. He died soon after reaching the hospital. The body was brought to Howard on advice of the sheriff at Wichita, but was later sent back to Wichita. Not much is known of Ellsworth, but he is believed to be about 50 years old, and lived at Latham. He has been in trouble with the law, and is believed to have been regularly in the booze-running business. The El Dorado paper says he lived with his mother, but had a wife and two daughters. Regrettable as the affair is, everybody believes Sheriff Brown acted entirely with his reasonable rights, and that had he not fired, Ellsworth would have begun using his own gun, and that he might have killed one or more of the officers. A man with an auto load of booze and a big loaded revolver is not a safe man for an official to parley with. No inquest has as yet been held. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ks/elk/newspapers/elkcount145nw.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/ksfiles/ File size: 2.7 Kb