Brown v. State

1928 OK CR 141, 266 P. 491, 40 Okla. Crim. 1, 1928 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 94
Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma·Decided April 18, 1928·No. No. A-6734.·Published·Cited by 7 cases

Opinion

DAVENPORT, J.

The plaintiff in error, hereinafter called the defendant, was convicted of robbery with the use of firearms, and sentenced to death by electrocution. The facts in the case are as follows:

On the 17th day of March, 1927, there was filed by the county attorney of Alfalfa county information charging the defendant with the crime of robbing the Farmers’ State Bank of Jet, Okla., with the use of firearms. On March 19, 1927, the defendant, Dave Brown, was brought before the district judge of Alfalfa county, and the district court was regularly convened, and defendant entered a plea of guilty to the charge in the information, and was sentenced by the district judge to death by electrocution on the 20th day of May, 1927. On the 21st day of March, 1927, there was filed in the district court of Alfalfa county a motion to set aside the judgment and sentence and recall the death warrant, and later an amended motion was filed, and an amendment to the motion, and, on April 16, 1927, the second amended motion was filed to set aside the judgment and sentence and recall the death Warrant; the grounds upon which the defendant relied in his second amended motion being as follows:

“First. That said defendant, Dave Brown, is now and on the 19th day of March, 1927, a minor of the age of 19 years, and that said defendant did not have a full and complete preliminary hearing as provided by law, prior to the filing of the information in the district court in this case, and that, if a preliminary hearing was had, the de *3 fendant was not advised as to his right to have counsel and attorneys at such preliminary hearing, and that said defendant was mentally incompetent to have waived a preliminary hearing.
“Second. That the record shows that the defendant was charged by complaint of the county attorney of Alfalfa county with this offense on the 15th day of March, 1927, and that on the same day said defendant was committed by the county judge of Alfalfa county, as examining magistrate, to jail, and bound to appear in the district court of said county, and that said record does not disclose that the defendant waived his right to plead or to have counsel, and that said defendant was incapable mentally of waiving such right.
“Third. That the defendant was not served with a copy of the information together with a list of the witnesses and their addresses, for two full days prior, to the alleged hearing on March 19, 1927, and that said defendant was mentally incompetent to waive the same.
“Fourth. That the record does not disclose that the defendant entered any plea of guilty, and the defendant was mentally incompetent to waive the same.
“Fifth. That, if any plea was entered by the defendant, he did not realize the consequences of his acts, and the court did not fix the time for passing judgment and sentence, as required by law, and the defendant was not mentally capable of waiving the same.
“Sixth. That the judgment of the court was rendered in haste, and imposes a cruel and unusual punishment in direct conflict with thq 'statutes of the state of Oklahoma and the Bill of Rights of the 'Constitution of the State of Oklahoma.
“'Seventh. That the defendant was not fully advised as to his constitutional rights as to being entitled to counsel to represent him at all stages of the case.
Eighth. That the defendant was not advised of his constitutional rights to have a jury pass upon the degree of punishment to be given him upon his plea of guilty.
“Ninth. That the defendant was not advised as to *4 his right to have 24 hours within which to plead to the information, and the defendant was mentally incompetent to waive the same.
“Tenth. That the court failed to protect the rights of this defendant, in that the court did not ascertain at said hearing the facts and circumstances surrounding the alleged offense and the facts and circumstances surrounding the supposed plea of guilty.
“Eleventh. That the conduct and demeanor of defendant as shown by the record at the time of the passing of the judgment and sentence of death upon this defendant were such as to create in the mind of the court a reasonable doubt as to the sanity of the defendant, and it was the duty of the court to have had the defendant examined as to his sanity.
‘Twelfth. That the record discloses that the defendant was deprived of his life and liberty without due process of law.
“Thirteenth. That the record discloses that no proper judicial hearing and determination of the rights of this defendant were had as contemplated by section 2785, 1921 Compiled Statutes, and for that reason this defendant is deprived of his constitutional and statutory rights.
“Fourteenth. That the record discloses that the punishment imposed upon this defendant was not for the alleged commission of the offense charged, but was imposed by the court in a heat of passion, and without due deliberation, and as a penalty upon the defendant for refusing to inform the court as to the identity of the other parties presumed to have been associated with the defendant in the commission of the alleged offense; and the record shows on its face that said sentence was not attended with due deliberation and the solemnities necessary and proper in passing sentence of death upon the defendant, and that the same was rendered in haste, and thereby deprived the defendant of his constitutional right of due process of law.
“Fifteenth. That the defendant is mentally incapacitated, and was so at the time of said hearing, as to realizing the consequences of his acts, and the defendant here and now offers to prove such facts by affidavits now pre *5 sented to this court and by oral testimony, and asks that the judgment and sentence of this court be withdrawn and the death warrant be recalled, and that a jury be impaneled to try the sanity of this defendant.”

The motion was assigned for hearing on April 18, 1927, and, on the 18th day of April, 1927, hearing upon the motion began. The defendant called as witnesses in his behalf his mother and several other witnesses tending to show the defendant was mentally incompetent, and did not known the consequences of his acts, or what punishment might be imposed upon his plea of guilty.

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Brown v. State, 1928 OK CR 141, 266 P. 491, 40 Okla. Crim. 1, 1928 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 94 (Okla. Ct. App. 1928).

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