MGM could’ve made a 2-reeler based on this incident, with Edgar Kennedy — AKA “Master of the Slow Burn” — playing the soaking-wet policeman badgered into arresting himself for spitting on the sidewalk during a downpour.
The charges against Officer Lindley were dropped the next day, but methinks Fred J. Wiseman didn’t hear the last of this.
The aggrieved Mr. Wiseman later became famous for his love of fast machines. He won third place during the California Grand Prize Race of 1909, which started and finished in Santa Rosa, and in 1911, earned a footnote in history for making the world’s first airmail flight with a hop between Petaluma and Santa Rosa.
OFFICER LINDLEY ARRESTS HIMSELFFRED J. WISEMAN CHARGES OFFICER WITH BREACH OF ANTI-EXPECTORATION LAW
A Few Days Ago the Officer Filed a Complaint Against His Accuser For Speeding His Automobile on Fourth StreetPolice Officer L. N. Lindley arrested himself on Wednesday afternoon on a complaint sworn to by Fred J. Wiseman, charging him with violating the anti-expectoration ordinance on Fourth street.
It will be remembered that Policeman Lindley filed a complaint against Wiseman at an early hour Sunday morning, charging the latter with speeding along Fourth street at a rate far in excess of that allowed by laws.
Policeman Lindley not only arrested himself but booked the arrest on the register at the police station. The arrest was made without any resistance on the part of the defendant. The hearing will be heard before Judge Bagley this afternoon. It was during the tremendous rainstorm Tuesday night that the alleged offense is said to have occurred.
– Press Democrat, March 30, 1905