The Price of a Madison Street Robbery
A young man is sentenced to prison after holding up a bystander at knifepoint.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Vance Sharp, who held up John Bastino on Madison street January 20, and deprived him of a watch and about $2 in silver, was sentenced yesterday by Judge Langley to one year's imprisonment in the penitentiary at hard labor. The prisoner's counsel advised him to withdraw his former plea of not guilty and enter one of guilty. He then represented to the court that his client had been the dupe of a comrade named Frank Morrison, who afterward turned state's evidence to save himself. As the prosecution also suggested leniency, Judge Langley thought one year was as severe a punishment as the crime required.
“Judge Langley thought one year was as severe a punishment as the crime required.”
Street robberies in downtown Seattle remain a persistent issue of concern, though judicial approaches to sentencing have evolved significantly since the 1890s. The tension between the actions of individual perpetrators and the influence of 'comrades' or accomplices reflects a timeless aspect of criminal justice discourse in growing cities.
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