THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, Dеfendant in Error, vs. JAMES A. WILSON, Plaintiff in Error
No. 20406
Supreme Court of Illinois
December 18, 1930
Rehearing denied Feb. 4, 1931
342 Ill. 358
The judgment is affirmed.
Per CURIAM: The foregoing opinion reported by Mr. Commissioner Partlow is hereby adopted as the opinion of the court, and judgment is entered in accordance therewith.
Judgment affirmed.
Mr. COMMISSIONER PARTLOW reported this opinion:
Plaintiff in error, James A. Wilson, (herein referred to as the defendant,) was convicted in the circuit court of LaSalle county under an indictment charging him with an assault with a loaded revolver upon Amos Elliott with intent to kill and murder. He was sentenced to the penitentiary, and a writ of error has been prosecuted from this court to review the judgment.
There is very little conflict in the evidence as to the material facts. The defendant was five feet seven inches tall, was fifty-nine years of age and weighed 180 pounds. For over three years he had been the minister in charge of a church at Mendota, in LaSalle county. He testified that for two years prior to the event in question he had delivered five addresses every Sunday, and on account of his heavy duties, in December, 1929, his health became impaired and he suffered from nervousness, insomnia and kidney trouble. On December 17, 1929, he went to Chicago, consulted a physician and was put on a diet. He testified that while in Chicago he contemplated suicide and bought a 38-caliber revоlver and a box of cartridges, which were sent to his home by express. Amos Elliott was the janitor of the church of which defendant was pastor. He was sixty-eight years of age and weighed 112 pounds. He lived at the southeast corner of Fifth street and Third avenue, in Mendota. The house faced north. There was a parlor in the northwest corner with a door on the north side opening onto a small porch. East of the parlor was the dining room, east of the dining room was the kitchen and east of the kitchen was a sewing room. There were doors connecting these four rooms. There was no outside door to the sewing room or the dining room but there were twо outside doors in the
“MENDOTA, ILLINOIS, December 30th, 1929.
“My Dear Mrs. Wagner—All I want is your forgiveness. Oh, if I could only recall those words that offended you they would never be spoken again. When I think of what I have meant to you, and of what I meant to John before his passing, and of how you feel towards me now, it almost kills me. It seems to be more than I can bear. No human being has ever suffered as I have suffered since discovering that my words offended you.
“This trouble has upset me so complеtely that I went to Chicago and consulted a physician, and while there I prepared myself to end it all, but when I think of the eternal destiny of my soul I shudder at the thought and fall on my knees before God and pray for His forgiveness and for strength to bear up and continue in His service.
“Now listen: I cannot get right before God until you freely forgive me. Won‘t you please do it? I confess that I made a mistake, even though what I said was said in the purest of motives, and since it offended you I beg that you forgive me and let us be just as we were before. I will never—no never—say anything to offend you again.
“I most earnestly request that you attend church and let me be the same old good pastor to you as in other days. If you will do that it will mean much to me, and if not, then I do not know how it will finally go with me.
“Your sorrowing friend, WILSON.”
On January 29, 1930, about 3:00 o‘clock P. M., defendant learned from three members of his official board that Mrs. Wagner desired to complain to the official board concerning the conduct of defendant towards her, that she had given the letter in question to Mrs. Elliott with instructions that Mr. Elliott lodge a complaint with the church board, and that the Elliotts were showing the letter to members of the congregation and making remarks about the letter detrimental to the character of defendant. After defendant learned about the circulation of this letter he went to his home and сalled the Elliott residence by telephone. Elli-
Defendant insists that the verdict is not sustained by the evidence. In support of this contention it is urged that the relations between him and Mr. and Mrs. Elliott were always friendly; that when he learned that the letter had been made public he became deeply concerned; that he went to the Elliott home in a quiet and orderly manner and asked for the letter; that it was delivered to him and he had the lawful possession of it; that Elliott illegally and forcibly took it from him; that then the trouble arose between them and the shooting began; that Elliott was the first assailant and defendant fired in the heat of passion—in a fit of emotional insanity; that the revolver was bought a month before by him with suicidal intent and was taken by him to the Elliott home for that purpose; that the shooting could not have been premeditated, and that there was no malice, either express or implied.
Malice is a necessary element of murder and of an assault with an intent to commit murder. Malice may be
Defendant insists that the facts in this case are similar to the facts in People v. Bissett, 246 Ill. 516, where it was held that the defendant was not guilty of murder but could only be guilty of manslaughter. The facts in the two cases are not similar. In the Bissett case the deceased tried in a public place to take from the defendant his revolver and there was a scuffle between them and deceased was killed. In this case Elliott was in his own home. Defendant by false representations got possession of the letter, to which he was not entitled. There was no scuffle, Elliott was back-
It is not claimed that defendant was insane at the time the shots were fired, but it is claimed that on account of his physical and mental condition he fired the shots in a moment of emotional insanity. The mental and physical condition of defendant was established largely by his own testimony. The physician in Chicago who attended him in Decembеr, 1929, did not testify. The letter was the basis of the trouble. The meaning of the letter is not clear. Its meaning evidently depends on facts not contained in it. Defendant testified that his only offense against Mrs. Wagner was that he talked to her about living alone in her home with a boarder. It is apparent that, regardless of the facts which caused the letter to be written, defendant, when he learned that it had been made public, regarded the situation as so serious as to justify his getting possession of the letter in any way he could. Within a short time after learning of the facts about the letter he went to the Elliott home. The fact that he went to the Elliott home the second time with а loaded revolver creates a presumption against him. He attempts to explain this by stating that he purchased the revolver in Chicago for suicidal purposes and that he took it to the Elliott home with the intention of committing suicide if he did not obtain the letter. Both of these statements depend entirely upon his own testimony. He claims he went to the Elliott home on a peaceful mission, but he secured the letter from Mrs. Elliott under false pretenses. He told her he merely wanted to see it. His actions up to this time may have been peaceable but his subsequent actions did not indicate any such intention. Mr. and Mrs. Elliott were in their own home. They had not аsked defendant to enter their house but he had come of his own accord. Mrs. Elliott was the legal custodian of the letter. Defendant had no right to take it away from her by force or under false representations. When Elliott took
Defendant insists that in his opening statement the State‘s attorney erroneously stated that for the purpose of showing the motive of defendant the jury should know all of the details concerning the relations between him and Mrs. Wagner which prompted the writing of the letter; that on the trial the State‘s attorney erroneously called Mrs. Wagner as a witness and attempted to prove these details, and that on cross-examination of the defendant he asked him as to the details and called his attention to certain of these details contained in the statement of defendant made at the hospital immediately after the shooting. The court excluded all of this evidence, but defendant insists that it was error for the State‘s attorney to even mention these matters before the jury. The presence of a motive which would lead the accused to commit the act charged is important in the consideration of the question as to whether he committed the offense, and it is always proper for the People to prove motive where it can be done by competent evidence. (People v. Zammuto, 280 Ill. 225.) Guilt cannot be shown by evidence that the defendant has committed other offenses, but when relevant evidence is offered it is admissible notwithstanding it may disclose another indictable offense. (People v. Watkins, 309 Ill. 318; People v. Cione, 293 id. 321.) In People v. Fricker, 320 Ill. 495, it was held that in a prosecution for murder, evidence of the defendant‘s illicit relations with the wife of the deceased was admissible to show a motive for the crime, and the fact that such evidence disclosed another indictable offense does not render it incompetent if it tends directly to show that the defendant was guilty of the crime charged. In People v. Spaulding, 309 Ill. 292, the same rule is announced, and many cases are cited in support thereof from this State and from other jurisdictions. To the same effect is People v. Selknes, 309 Ill. 115. The meaning of this letter is not clear. It is apparent from the language used that there were certain mattеrs between defendant and Mrs. Wagner which caused the writing of the letter. If these other matters indicated a motive for the shooting they were proper. The trial court evidently was of the opinion that evidence of this kind was not admissible under any circumstances. The nature of this evidence does not appear in the record, but if it tended to show motive, malice or intent it should have been heard by the court in the absence of the jury and its competency determined by the court so it could be reviewed by this court. The attempt of the State‘s attorney to introduce evidence which he thought was competent, and some of which was cоmpetent, was not error.
Defendant insists that the State‘s attorney not only improperly cross-examined defendant on the written statement made by him to the State‘s attorney at the hospital immediately after the shooting, but that after such cross-examination the written statement was not introduced in evidence. The statement is not in the record and we do not know its contents. The State‘s attorney had a right to cross-examine defendant on his testimony given on the trial and to call his attention to any statement made by him at the hospital contained in his written statement, (People v. Okopske, 321 Ill. 32; People v. Kircher, 309 id. 500,) but under the ruling of the court the entire statement was
Defendant objected to various remarks made by the State‘s attorney in his opening statement and in his opening and closing arguments. The record does not contain all of the opening statement or all of the arguments—it only contains certain extracts therefrom. None of the argument for defendant is in the record. To many remarks to which objections are made by defendant in his brief no objection was made. In several instances an objection was made to some specific remark, and defendant in his argument includes other statements previously made to which no objection was interposed. A defendаnt cannot sit by and hear arguments made against him without objection and then assign such arguments as error in a reviewing court. If he wants the argument considered upon review he must object and secure a ruling from the trial court. We will only consider the statements and arguments to which specific objections were made.
In his opening statement the State‘s attorney, in referring to the statement of the defendant as to the purpose for which he went to the Elliott house, said: “That is what he was down there for with a revolver concealed in his pocket; not down there in any rage; not down there for any other purpose than by hook or by crook, at the еxpense of whatever human lives it might be necessary to take, to get that damaging piece of evidence against him. He tried it like Judas Iscariot. He did it with a smile. He had visited Mrs. Elliott at 4:00 o‘clock—” With reference to the attempted suicide of defendant the State‘s attorney said: “If he intended to take himself out of this realm at that time because of what he had done this is his own judgment, and a more powerful judgment than you gentlemen are prepared to pass upon.” He further said: “It is proper, I think, for me to say that if under the law you feel this was a serious attempt at suicide, under the
The State‘s attorney started to read the letter and an objection was sustained to it. He then stated its contents without objection, and concluded with the statement that “he says he is only human and asked to be forgiven, and if he has her forgivеness all will be well.” Objection was made to any quotation from the letter, and the objection was overruled. The letter was later admitted in evidence. The jury knew its entire contents and defendant could not have been injured by the statements made. The State‘s attorney then said: “I think as a part of the motive you should know all the details concerning this affair between the minister and Mrs. Wagner.” An objection was made, and the State‘s attorney said: “I think I have a right to state our side of the case. I don‘t know that it is incompetent. It is proof that will bear on the question of the motive and it will show his reason for going down there with a loaded gun for the purpose of getting it.” Thе court refused at that time to pass upon the admissibility of the evidence but confined the opening statement to facts clearly admissible. No statement was made by the State‘s attorney as to what the relations were between defendant and Mrs. Wagner and it was not error for him to state what he thought he had a right to prove. The State‘s attorney later said: “As the trial proceeds we will particularly prove to you gentlemen the relationship between Mrs. Wagner and the defendant as throwing some light upon the whole transaction. If the court rules that the evidence is admissible it will be a collateral matter in one sense of
In his opening argument the State‘s attorney, after referring to the number of witnesses who had been called to prove the general reputation of defendant, said: “Their testimony amounted to nothing. Every man until he commits his first crime bears a good reputation. I undertake that Jesse James, before he drew his first gun, was favorably spoken of among his friends and neighbors.” An objection was sustained to this last remark. It is claimed that the State‘s attorney compared the defendant to Jesse James, but this contention is not sustained by the remark made. Referring to certain statements defendant is alleged to have made with reference to getting the letter, the State‘s attorney said: “These fellows that are talking about doing things never do them. He wants to get your sympathy—wants to get you to feel—wants you to get a sympathetic feeling for his act and let you bear the brunt of his crime. He made his bed; let him lie in it. There is not any reason why you gentlemen should bear the criticism and scorn of this crime by letting him go.” Objection to this remark was overruled. There was no error in the
In his closing argument the State‘s attorney, in commenting on his inability to get in evidence the written state-
It is insisted by the People that some of the argument on behalf of the People was based upon statements made by defendant in his opening statement and in his argument to the jury. There is nothing to show what was said in the opening statement and argument of counsel for defendant. It is difficult to determine from isolated sentences culled from an argument whether statements were or were not рroper or whether they were in response to arguments made by opposite counsel. We are satisfied that this record does not show such overstepping of the bounds of legitimate argument based upon the record as would require a reversal of the judgment.
On behalf of defendant forty-eight instructions were submitted to the court, thirty of which were given, and a like number were given on behalf of the People. In his
The judgment is affirmed.
Per CURIAM: The foregoing opinion reported by Mr. Commissioner Partlow is hereby adopted as the opinion of the court, and judgment is entered in accordance therewith.
Judgment affirmed.
