1972: Smithville Bank Robber Found Guilty – Awaiting Sentence

Sept. 15-19, 1972

A federal court in Austin took little more than an hour to decide an 18-year-old Austin youth was guilty of aiding and abetting in the June robbery of a Smithville bank. Two women charged with actually performing the theft had pleaded guilty earlier. The maximum sentence for the crime was 25 years in prison.

In other old news, at a public hearing held by city council, no one contested the proposed annexation of the Horton Hill addition into the City of La Grange. As a result, the 5.82-acre area was to be formally tacked onto the city at a special council meeting on Sept. 27. Residents of the addition, including Coy E. Hicks, Harold Maas, Charlie Vasut, Emil Kern and Anton Weber, signed the original annexation petition.

County commissioners, funeral home operators, city officials from La Grange, Schulenburg and Flatonia, and two representatives from the Texas Department of Health, held a meeting to discuss future ambulance service. Since all Fayette County funeral homes were going out of the ambulance business at the end of the year, alternatives had to be sought. No decisions were made at the meeting, however.

Fayette County Commissioners approved the purchase of a third new radar unit for the Texas Highway Patrol.

City of La Grange employee Kermit (Booby) Lange suffered a painful and apparently serious fracture of his right leg above the knee in a work-related accident. Witnesses said Lange was part of a street and bridge department crew excavating a storm sewer adjacent to Hwy. 71 near the Royal Crown plant. When a sudden heavy stream of water rushed at him, he backed away onto the street, stepping into the path of a westbound 1970 Buick driven by a La Grange woman. After initial treatment at Fayette Memorial Hospital, Mr. Lange was taken to Austin’s Brackenridge Hospital.

La Grange’s Leopards won the season-opening football game over the Bellville Brahmas, 36-7. The Leps posted 21 first downs, rushed for 326 yards, passed for 38 yards, threw 11 passes, and completed two. The Leps also punted twice. However, La Grange was penalized 13 times for 135 yards. Billy Miller caught six passes for 62 yards, Jim Quinn carried the ball 15 times for 156 yards, Buddy Grobe collected 120 yards on 13 totes and David Zatopek had 40 yards on eight carries. On defense, Edward Hardy had two tackles, three assisted tackles and a pass interception. Robert Poole made three unassisted tackles and two with assistance. Miller intercepted a pass, and Freddie Adamcik, Maurice Bouldwin, John Eilert and Quinn each recovered an opponent’s fumble. Richard Wagner was singled out for extra effort on defense.

A delegation of farmers from the eastern half of the county appeared before Commissioners Court with a deer problem. The group deplored the loss of some of their feed crops and family gardens to an overpopulation of deer due in part because there was no open season on does in the county. Although the court and Judge David M. Murray sympathized, they said there was nothing they could do to solve the problem. However, Judge Murray said he would take the matter up with the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department in Austin. Members of the delegation were: Paul Barnhart, Frank H. Svoboda, John Smidovec, Gilbert Henneke, Henry Cook, Herman Plagens, Fritz W. Meinen, Rudolph Krenek and Gus Polasek.

Funeral services were held for: Lee Roy G. Stolle, 59, of La Grange; Andrew Herns of La Grange; Robert Breeden, 76, of West Point; H.P. Krause, 72, a La Grange native; and John Srubar, 76, a Fayette County native.

Present and former Schuetzen Koenigs (shooting kings), as well as current and former presidents, lined up for the March of Kings at the Round Top Rifle Association Hall behind flag bearer Percy Kasparek. Recognized were: Paul Jaster, current president; Elmo Klatt, newly crowned Schuetzen King; Ronald Klump, retiring king; C.W. Hinze, association president from 1965-69; Ernst Emmrich, who served as president for more than 20 years; and Ruben Krause, president from 1960-61.

“Our dream has come true!” exclaimed the students and faculty of Sacred Heart School when the installation of air conditioning was completed in five classrooms. Four had two-ton units, while the extra-large classroom upstairs adjacent to the library had a much larger unit that cooled both rooms. The Sacred Heart PTA paid for the wiring and other installation expenses, while donations from several interested parents covered the cost of the units.

The 1973 Oldsmobiles and Pontiacs were being unveiled at Bohot-Todd, Inc. in La Grange on Thursday, while Brasher Motor Co. in Weimar, Schulenburg and La Grange planned to show their new lines the same day. The all-new Ford car with significant improvements and a new Ford pickup truck with the most extensive changes in six years were starting their debut on Friday at La Grange Motor Co.

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