194 Mo. 717 | Mo. | 1906
On November 16, 1903, O. P. McCarver was indicted by the grand jury of St. Francois county for murder in the first degree for having, .at said county, on the 14th day of November, 1903, shot and killed with a pistol, one Harry Lett. Thereafter, at the August term, 1904, of said court, defendant was put upon his trial before the court and jury, found guilty of the offense charged, and his punishment assessed at death. Defendant’s motions for new trial and in arrest having been overruled, he appeals.
After defendant’s arraignment and his plea of not guilty were entered of record, he made application for a change of venue of said cause on account of the prejudice of the judge of the St. Francois Circuit Court against him. The application was sustained, and Hon. Samuel Davis, judge of the Fifteenth circuit, was called in by the judge of the St. Francois Circuit Court to try the case. After a panel of forty men had been qualified to sit as jurors upon the trial of the cause, the court discharged them all on account of alleged misconduct of which he became satisfied. At the same term, however, another panel of forty qualified jurors were summoned, from which twelve were selected to act as jurors upon the trial of the case, which was then entered upon. The result was a mistrial. Defendant was again put upon his trial at the August term, 1904, of said court and, as
¡ The homicide was committed at Farmington, in a saloon of which Bentley and Ryan were proprietors, about ten o’clock on Saturday evening, November, 14, 1903. Until a short time prior to the shooting, deceased had been employed in said saloon. Defendant, at the time of the difficulty, was the proprietor of another saloon in said town. A few minutes before the shooting occurred, deceased came into the saloon with a pitcher of water which he set down behind the bar. The saloon faced south, and the bar, which was twenty feet long, was on the east side. At the end of the bar was an ice. chest, and behind that was the side or east door. After the deceased had put the pitcher of water behind the bar, he walked around the bar and out the front door. After he went out defendant said, ‘ ‘ Harry [meaning deceased] is a good boy, but he has a brother that is a God damn son-of-a-bitch.” After walking a short distance on the street deceased met his uncle Leo Lett, and invited him to go and take a cigar with him. Deceased and his uncle then turned and walked back to the Bentley & Ryan saloon, deceased having been absent about ten minutes.
Leo Lett and deceased walked in the front door, passed by defendant and his friends, and on to the extreme other end of the bar, and deceased called for and purchased a cigar for himself and one for his uncle. Defendant then invited all present to take a drink with him; some did so, but deceased and his uncle declined with thanks, the uncle saying that he had just had a cigar with Harry. Defendant said, “You think you are too damn good to drink with me. ’ ’ Defendant made the remark again, and added thereto, “Harry, you are God damn son-of-a-bitch.” Deceased replied, “I am no more of a son-of-a-bitch than you are.” Defendant then applied a vile epithet to deceased, which is too vulgar to be reproduced, to which deceased retorted, “same
The defendant’s evidence tended to prove that defendant and deceased were both drinking at Bentley & Ryan’s saloon, and that deceased left the saloon after bringing a pitcher of water, and was gone perhaps half an hour. That George Gordon heard deceased and Leo Lett talking out in front of the saloon, at which time deceased asked Leo if he got it, and Leo replied, “Yes, and a damn good one too.” Deceased then asked his uncle to stand behind him, and they would go in and he would do the rest. That deceased pointed out defendant through the glass window and said, “He is in there, setting them up.” That at that time defendant and
In rebuttal, the State’s evidence tended to show that one of defendant’s main witnesses, George Gordon, was not in Farmington on that night, but that he attended a shooting contest at the home of James Field, some twenty miles away, and remained at Mr. Field’s all that afternoon and until the next (Sunday) morning. The State’s evidence further tended to show that it was impossible for defendant’s witnesses, Jesse Biggs, George Gordon and others to have seen what occurred in the saloon, as said witnesses were outside on the sidewalk, and the window curtains were raised, the curtains working from below. The defendant read to the jury the deposition of one Arthur Bodell, which corroborated defendant in many particulars; but Bodell was contradicted by his testimony before the coroner.
Defendant then offered some witnesses who testified that the curtains were raised that night, but not raised till after the shooting, and that the witness Gordon was in Farmington that night.
Then the State introduced a number of witnesses who testified to the bad character and reputation of defendant’s witnesses who had testified to seeing George Gordon in Farmington the night of the shooting. Lydia Jacobs andLinnie Moore, two of defendant’s witnesses, were shown to be of bad moral character.
The court, over the objections and exceptions of defendant, instructed the jury as follows:
“1. The court instructs the jury that if you believe from the evidence in this case that the defendant, O. P. McCarver, at the county of St. Francois, State of Missouri, at any time prior to the 16th day of November, 1903, willfully, deliberately, premeditatedly and with malice aforethought, shot with a pistol and by such shooting wounded Harry Lett, and that within a year and a day thereafter and before the 16th day of November, 1903, said Harry Lett, at the county of St. Francois.
‘,‘2. If you believe from the evidence that the defendant, O. P. McCarver, in the county of St. Francois, State of Missouri, at any time prior to the 16th day of November, 1903, willfully, premeditatedly, and of his malice aforethought, but not deliberately, shot and wounded Harry Lett, and that within a year and a day thereafter and before the 16th day of November, 1903, the said Harry Lett, at the county of St. Francois aforesaid, died in consequence of said shooting and wounding, then it will be your duty to find' the defendant guilty of murder in the second degree.
“3. The court instructs the jury that, as used in these instructions, the term ‘willfully’ means intentionally; that is, not accidentally. ‘Deliberately’ means in a cool state of the blood, it does not mean brooded over or reflected upon for a week or a day or an hour; but it means a conscious purpose to kill, formed in a cool state of the blood, and not under a violent passion, suddenly aroused by some real or supposed grievance. ‘Premediatedly’ means thought of beforehand for any length of time, however short. ‘Malice,’ in its legal sense, does not mean mere spite or ill will, as ordinarily understood, but means the intentional doing of a wrongful act, that condition of mind which prompts one person to take the life of another without just cause or justification; and it signifies a state of disposition which shows a heart regardless of social duty and fatally bent on mischief. ‘Malice aforethought’ means with malice and premeditation.
“4. You are further instructed that he who willfully, that is, intentionally, uses upon another at some vital point a deadly weapon, must, in the absence of qualifying facts, be presumed to know that the effect is likely to produce death, and knowing this, must be presumed to intend death, which is the probable consequence
“5. Upon the question of self-defense the court instructs the jury that if at the time defendant shot Harry Lett, he, the defendant, had reasonable cause to apprehend a design on the part of Harry Lett to take his life, or to do him some great personal injury, and that there was reasonable cause for him to apprehend immediate danger of such design being accomplished, and that to avert such apprehended danger he shot, and that at the time he shot he had reasonable cause to believe and did believe that it was necessary for him to shoot and kill to protect himself from such apprehended danger, you will acquit the defendant on the ground of self-defense. It is not necessary that the danger should have been actual or real, or that the danger should have been impending and about to fall. All that is necessary is that defendant had cause to believe and did believe this fact. On the other hand, it is not enough that he should have so believed, but he must have had reasonable cause to so believe. Whether or not he had reasonable cause is for you to determine under all the facts and circumstances given in evidence. If you shall believe from the evidence that defendant did not have reasonable cause to so believe, you cannot acquit him on the ground of self-defense, although you may believe from the evidence that the defendant really thought he
“6. The court further instructs the jury that, when a person has reasonable grounds to apprehend that some one is about to do him great bodily harm, and there are reasonable grounds for believing the danger imminent and that such design will be acomplished, he may safely act upon appearances, and kill the assailant if that be necessary to avoid the apprehended danger, and the killing will be justifiable, although it may after-wards turn out that the appearances were false, and that there was in fact no design to do him serious injury nor danger that it would be done, and in passing upon the question whether the defendant had reasonable ground for believing that there was imminent danger that the deceased was about to kill him or do him some great bodily harm, the jury should determine the question from the standpoint of the defendant at the time he acted and under his surroundings at that particular instant of time, and the jury must also, in passing upon that question, take into consideration the threats, if any, made by the deceased against the defendant.
“7. The court instructs the jury that they should take into consideration the threats, if any, made by deceased against the defendant. If you believe from the evidence that any threats made by deceased were communicated to defendant prior to the killing, then such threat, or threats, if any, so communicated may be considered by you as explaining the conduct and apprehensions of defendant at the time of the shooting. ■ You may also consider any threats you may believe from the evidence were made by Harry Lett and not communicated to the defendant prior to the killing, for the purpose of explaining the conduct and demeanor of deceased at-the time of the shooting. If the jury believe from the evidence that prior to the shooting said Harry Lett had made threats against the defendant, yet this fact alone did not justify or excuse defendant for shoot
“8. The court instructs the jury that the defendant is presumed to be innocent, and- this presumption attends and protects him at every stage of the case until it is overcome by testimony which proves his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt; and it is not enough in a criminal case to justify a verdict of guilty that there may be strong suspicion or even strong probabilities of the guilt of the defendant, but the law requires proof so clear and satisfactory as to leave no reasonable doubt .of defendant’s guilt.
‘ ‘ 9. The jury are instructed that the indictment in this case is of itself a mere formal accusation or charge against the defendant, and is not of itself any evidence of the guilt of the defendant, and no juror should per,mit himself to be to any extent influenced against the defendant because or on account of the indictment in this case.
“10. Before defendant can be convicted of any offense under the indictment the jury must believe from ..the evidence that the defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. A reasonable doubt, however, must be a substantial doubt, arising out of a due consideration of all the testimony, and not a mere possibility of defendant’s innocence.
“11. The defendant is a competent witness in his own behalf, and his testimony is to be weighed by the same rules that govern the testimony of other witnesses ; but in weighing his testimony the jury may take into consideration the fact that he is the defendant in the case, and his interest in the result of the trial.
Then follows another instruction (No. 13), as to the form of the verdict, which it is unnecessary to reproduce.
After the arguments of counsel on both sides to the jnry, the court withdrew instruction No. 7 from the jury and gave in lieu thereof another instruction (No. 7a), which reads as follows:
“7a. All threats which you believe from the evidence were made by either the deceased, Harry Lett, or by Leo Lett against the defendant should be considered by you in arriving at a verdict. Any threats which were communicated to defendant should be considered as explaining the conduct and apprehensions of defendant at the time of the shooting and all threats, whether communicated to the defendant or not, should be considered in passing upon the evidence as to the conduct
The defendant again renewed his objection to the instructions as a whole, because they did not properly declare all the law in writing to the jury necessary for their deliberations, which objection was by the court overruled, and defendant excepted.
Thereupon, on the 1st day of September, 1904, the jury returned into the court their verdict and finding, the same- having been written on the body of said instruction No. 13, as to the form of the verdict, as follows: “We, the jury, find the defendant, O. P. McCarver guilty of murder in the first degree. J. D. Webb, foreman.”
The court thereupon orally informed the jury that the verdict so returned by them was not in due form, and that they should return to their room and correct the same, or return another verdict written on another sheet of paper. Said jury again returned to their room, and within a few minutes returned into court the following verdict: “We, the jury, find the defendant, O. P. McCarver, guilty of murder in the first degree. J. D. Webb, foreman.”
To the action of the court, and to the returning of said verdict the defendant objected and excepted at the time. While it was the absolute right of defendant to be tried in the county where the offense is charged to have been committed, such right extended no further; but
"When Judge Davis took the bench, in pursuance of the call of Judge Anthony, to try this case, the defendant by his counsel filed a motion or plea to the jurisdiction based on the ground that judge Davis did not have jurisdiction in any criminal case in the Fifteenth judicial circuit of Missouri, over which he presided, there being a criminal court in said Fifteenth judicial circuit having exclusive jurisdiction in all criminal cases originating in said circuit, or which go there for trial upon change of venue. The contention is that section 2597, Revised Statutes 1899, only conferred upon Judge An
It is claimed by defendant that Martin Westover, Abe Elser, N. A. Kinkead and James P. Sigman, who were selected as qualified jurors on the panel of forty, from which twelve were selected to sit as jurors upon the trial of the cause, were not qualified .to sit as such jurors, and that the court erred in allowing them to remain on the panel of forty. The objection against Westover was general, no reason for the objection having been given, and it has been ruled by this court that the objection must be specific. [State v. Taylor, 134 Mo. 109; State v. Evans, 161 Mo. 95; State v. McGinnis, 158 Mo. 105.] The same may be said with respect to the objection to jurors Sigman and Elser. Besides, their examination touching their qualifications as jurors showed them to be clearly qualified, as it appeared that the opinion which each had formed was based upon newspaper reports of the homicide, and both stated that they could try the case fairly. Such opinions did not, under the circumstances, disqualify them as jurors. [State v. Duffy, 124 Mo. 1; State v. Hunt, 141 Mo. 626.] In State v. Duffy, supra, it is said: ‘ ‘ Persons who have formed opinion of the guilt or innocence of one accused of crime, from rumor or newspaper reports, are not for
The challenges to these jurors were only general,
About the time the jury was selected to try the case, it was discovered that the indictment upon which the defendant was then on trial was lost. It was then shown by the records of said court that an indictment had theretofore been found by a grand jury of St. Francois county, returned into the court and filed in the office of the clerk of the circuit court of said county, charging the defendant with murder in the first degree, in having killed and murdered, at said county, one Harry Lett with a pistol, a certified copy of which said indictment had been furnished by the clerk of said court to the prosecuting attorney of said county and was then in evidence before the court. The trial court then, by an entry of record, after hearing evidence that satisfied the court that the original indictment had been lost or destroyed and that the copy was a true copy of the original indictment, adopted this certified copy of the indictment as the indictment in the case, and then proceeded with the trial. Defendant claims that this was error; that the loss of the indictment could not be supplied in that way, and that supplying the record is not finding the indictment. It was held in State v. Simpson, 67 Mo. 647, that while no power is conferred by statute to supply a lost indictment, such power exists independent of any statute, and authorizes a court in which an indictment has been found by a grand jury of the county, when such indictment has been lost
Counsel for defendant complain in their brief of alleged improper remarks by thé prosecuting attorney respecting his failure to bring witnesses to impeach the reputation of the defendant. Whatever may have been his statements, they are not preserved in the bill of exceptions, and as such cannot be shown by affidavits, as was attempted to be done in this case, they cannot be considered upon this appeal. The authorities are all one way upon this subject. [State v. Welsor, 117 Mo. 570; State v. Lamb, 141 Mo. 298; State v. Grant, 144 Mo. 56; State v. McAfee, 148 Mo. 370.]
Instructions numbered 5 and 7 are criticised upon the ground, as claimed, that they limited the right of defendant to defend himself against Harry Lett, the deceased, alone, and were erroneous, and that the withdrawal from the jury of instruction numbered 7 and
The record further shows that after said instruction numbered 7a had been prepared by the court, and before it was read to the jury, one of defendant’s counsel was, at his own request, permitted to read it, and after doing so, he remarked, “We have no objection; that is the law, only it is hard to read,” thus showing that this instruction was not objected to, but was given by and with defendant’s assent, and he cannot now be heard to criticise it. Defendant’s objections to all other
We are unable to appreciate the criticism upon instruction numbered 4, to the effect that it instructs the jury that the intentional killing of a human being with a deadly weapon, without any lawful provocation, must be presumed to be murder in the first degree. The instruction does not so state; nor does the case of State v. Silk, 145 Mo. 240, or State v. Fairlamb, 121 Mo. 137, so hold. On the contrary, it is said in Silk’s case that a homicide committed by the use of a deadly weapon, and without deliberation, is murder in the second degree. The same rule was announced in the Pairlamb case. The instruction under consideration, in defining murder in the first degree, tells the jury that in order to convict defendant of that offense, they must first be
No one can read the testimony disclosed by this record without coming to the conclusion that the evidence fully supports the verdict. There is nothing in the record which tends in the least to show that the verdict was the result of prejudice or bias against the defendant. Upon the other hand, the testimony clearly shows that the homicide was deliberate and premeditated, and without the slightest excuse or justification. The instructions are free from objection and were very fair to the defendant. He had, we think, so far as disclosed by the record, a fair and impartial trial, and must now bear the punishment which the law imposes for its transgression.
Finding no reversible error in the record, we can but affirm the judgment, and direct that the sentence pronounced be executed. It is so ordered.