Conaster v. State

1969 OK CR 169, 455 P.2d 719, 1969 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 484
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma
DecidedApril 30, 1969
DocketNo. A-14399
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 1969 OK CR 169 (Conaster v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Conaster v. State, 1969 OK CR 169, 455 P.2d 719, 1969 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 484 (Okla. Ct. App. 1969).

Opinion

NIX, Judge.

Plaintiff in Error, David Conaster, hereinafter referred to as the defendant, was convicted of the crime of Assault with a Dangerous Weapon in the District Court of Stephens County, Oklahoma, and sentenced to three years imprisonment. An appeal from the judgment and sentence was perfected to this Court.

The evidence at defendant’s trial conducted on the 16th and 17th day of February, 1967, indicates substantially as follows : Three eighteen year old boys, Richard A. Wansley, victim of the attack, Richard Sylvester, and Richard Savage, were packing up Savage’s car and preparing to leave a fishing trip on the shore of Clear Creek Lake east of Duncan, Oklahoma, in Stephens County, about 3:00 A.M. on July 23, 1966, when a car approached. This car, driven by Don Boice, contained [721]*721the defendant and four other young people. As the car approached, Richard Wansley shined his flashlight into the Boice car. The Boice car drove up behind the Savage car and stopped. Two people emerged, and one, the defendant, complained to Wansley about shining the flashlight in the car. Wansley testified that he apologized, but that the defendant vigorously persisted in his complaint. Upon noticing Wansley’s hunting knife, which was in a scabbard on his belt, defendant drew a knife and threatened Wansley. Wansley testified that he believed that the defendant was about to come at him with the knife, and that the defendant said, “I’m going to cut your guts out,” and jabbed at him. Wansley testified that he attempted to grab defendant’s wrist, but that the defendant hit him in the head with his free hand. Wansley then ran into the lake where he remained for some 15 minutes while the defendant called him names and threw rocks at him.

Testimony indicates that Savage, after being jumped by defendant’s companion, then drove his car several yards from the scene of the encounter where Wansley joined them and they left the lake. The three boys then returned to the Savage home, where the police were notified and Savage was taken to the hospital for treatment. There was ample testimony from other witnesses that there was some kind of confrontation between the defendant and Wansley, and that Wansley ran into the lake with the defendant chasing him. Richard Sylvester testified that he saw the defendant threaten Wansley with a knife. The testimony does not indicate that Wansley attempted to remove his hunting knife from its scabbard on his belt, nor did he threaten to do so.

Defendant testified that he did confront Wansley complaining about the flashing of the light in the car, that he was mad, and that he started to hit Wans-ley. The defendant testified that before he could strike Wansley he fell and that he did not at any time pull a knife on Wansley, nor did he threaten to cut him. Defendant did testify to chasing Wansley into the lake, but 'claimed that he did not throw any rocks at him and did not call him names. The jury, after weighing the evidence, found the defendant guilty as charged and assessed his punishment at three years imprisonment with the recommendation of a suspended sentence. Defendant’s motion for a new trial was overruled and the judgment and sentence was imposed on March 1, 1967. Defendant’s application for a suspended sentence was denied.

We first consider defendant’s contention that under 21 O.S.1961, §§ 641, 642, 643, 645, 652, and 653, there is some confusion and repetition in the provisions for different penalties to such an extent that the defendant is unable to determine from the information with what crime he has been charged. Accordingly, defendant contends the trial court erred in failing to quash the information, that the defendant’s conduct only constituted a misdemeanor, and thus neither the verdict or the judgment are sustained by the evidence.

The information in this case reads, in relevant part, as follows:

“ * * * David Conaster did * * * commit the crime of assault with a dangerous weapon in the manner informed as follows, to-wit: That is to say, the said defendant in the county and state aforesaid, and on the day and year aforesaid, then and there being, did then and there wilfully, wrongfully and unlawfully, intentionally and feloniously, without justifiable or excusable cause, commit an assault on one Richard A. Wans-ley, with a sharp and dangerous weapon, to wit: a knife with blade measuring approximately 4½ inches long, sharp of edge and point, held in the hand of said defendant and used by him to present, menace and threaten to cut the said Richard A. Wansley with the unlawful and felonious intent then and there to do him great bodily harm; contrary to the form of the Statutes, in such case made [722]*722and provided, and against the peace and dignity of the State of Oklahoma.”

Title 21, O.S.1961, § 645, is titled “Assault and Battery with a Dangerous Weapon,” and provides as follows:

“Every person who, with intent to do bodily harm and without justifiable or excusable cause, commits any assault and battery upon the person of another with any sharp or dangerous weapon, or who, without such cause, shoots or attempts to shoot at another, with any kind of firearms or air gun or other means whatever, with intent to injure any person, although without intent to kill such person or to commit any felony, is punishable by imprisonment in the penitentiary not exceeding five (5) years, or by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one (1) year."

The defendant cites in support of his position the case of Davis v. State, Okl.Cr., 354 P.2d 466, in which this Court found that the information was unclear as to what section of the statutes the charge was being brought, and ordered a new trial. However, it is apparent in the instant case that, unlike Davis v. State, supra, the information is clear and concise as to the charge filed by the prosecutor and there is no ambiguity as to the statute under which the charge has been filed. Title 21, O.S.1961, § 641, provides:

“An assault is any wilful and unlawful attempt or offer with force or violence to do a corporal hurt to another."

We reject the argument of the defendant that this is the correct statute under which the prosecution should have brought the charge and that defendant should have only been found guilty of a misdemeanor. In Blevins v. State, 11 Okl.Cr. 563, 149 P. 925, this Court held in the first paragraph of its syllabus as follows:

“Ordinarily, on a state of facts which tend to establish that a person committed an assault with a knife or other sharp or dangerous instrument, an information should not be predicated on Section 2336 [21 O.S.1961, § 542] but should be based upon Section 2344 * * * [21 O.S.1961, § 645].”

We therefore find that the trial court had jurisdiction to enter the judgment and sentence as the information and the evidence were sufficient to sustain a conviction under the terms of section 645, supra.

Next we consider defendant’s proposition of improper conduct by the trial judge and the prosecuting attorney. Defendant urges as error the questioning by the trial judge of the witness, Don Boice, defendant’s companion, as follows:

“BY THE COURT: Why did you drive down there in the first place?
BY MR. SULLIVAN: We object to the court examining this witness by being prejudicial to the rights of the defendant.
BY THE COURT: Well I guess I’ll overrule your objection.

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Related

Jones v. State
1976 OK CR 234 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1976)

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Bluebook (online)
1969 OK CR 169, 455 P.2d 719, 1969 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 484, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/conaster-v-state-oklacrimapp-1969.