According to gossip why didnt the sheriff throw arthur radley in jail years ago?

According to Miss. Stephanie, "The sheriff hadn’t the heart to put him in jail alongside Negroes, so Boo was locked in the courthouse basement."

Actually Boo did go to jail when he and the other boys locked the beadle in the outhouse and stole a car. The others went to a state detention home; Mr. Radley did not want his son to associate with them, so Boo (Arthur) went to jail instead.