Dix v. State

472 S.W.2d 243, 4 Tenn. Crim. App. 412, 1971 Tenn. Crim. App. LEXIS 407
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee
DecidedJuly 20, 1971
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 472 S.W.2d 243 (Dix v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Dix v. State, 472 S.W.2d 243, 4 Tenn. Crim. App. 412, 1971 Tenn. Crim. App. LEXIS 407 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1971).

Opinion

OPINION

GALBREATH, Judge.

The plaintiff in error appeals from a conviction in the Shelby County Criminal Court of assault and battery with intent to unlawfully fondle a child under the age of twelve (12) years and the judgment of the court on the verdict of the jury fixing punishment at five (5) years in the penitentiary.

We previously reversed a conviction for crime against nature by inserting the penis into the anus of the victim, a five year old son of the defendant, because the evidence adduced at the trial of that cause did not prove penile penetration, but on the contrary proved that such penetration could not have occurred as theorized by the prosecution. Subsequently the State proceeded to trial on the second count of the indictment charging the crime for which the defendant stands convicted.

A number of assignments of error are presented. We deal first with a proposition that not only forces reversal but dismissal of the case as it now stands.

There is some division among members of the panel of judges considering this case as to the issue of double jeopardy raised by one of the assignments of error. The isolated view of the writer is that a verdict of the jury on the greater offense charged in a multiple count indictment does not necessarily amount to an acquittal of the charges contained in other counts that are not resolved by the jury verdict, while it is the contention of Judges Walker and Russell that a special verdict upon a single count of such an indictment gives the effect of an acquittal on other counts not so resolved. Support for the latter view is found in such cases as Harvey v. State, 213 Tenn. 608, 376 S.W.2d 497; Franklin v. State, 202 Tenn. 666, 308 S.W. 2d 417; Asbury v. State, 178 Tenn. 43, 154 S.W.2d 794; French v. State, 159 Tenn. 451, 19 S.W.2d 276; State v. Abernathy, 153 Tenn. 441, 284 S.W. 361; Campbell v. State, 17 Tenn. 333; 5 Wharton’s Criminal Law and Procedure, (Anderson) Sec. 2129, p. 322; and is acknowledged to be the majority position taken by the appellate courts in Tennessee.

Persuasive to me, and not directly in conflict with the cases cited above in my sole opinion, is the principle laid down in such cases as Usary v. State, 172 Tenn. 305, 112 S.W.2d 7, which reiterates the rule from Dowdy v. State, 158 Tenn. 364, 13 S.W.2d 794:

" '4. But when the same facts constitute two or more offenses, wherein the lesser offense is not necessarily involved in the greater, and when the facts necessary to convict on a second prosecution would not necessarily have convicted on’ the first, then the first prosecution will [245]*245not be a bar to the second, although the offenses were both committed at the same time and by the same act.’ ” Usary v. State, 172 Tenn. at 315, 112 S.W.2d at 10.

Usary involved a two count indictment charging driving under the influence of an intoxicant and reckless driving, and it was held that an acquittal on the drunk driving count did not bar a prosecution on the reckless driving count at a subsequent trial, the first jury not having agreed on a verdict one way or the other on the latter count.

In the case sub judice it would seem that the acts alleged in the indictment were, as in Usary, supra, committed at the same time but that they consisted of two separate offenses. The defendant could conceivably have achieved penetration without any degree of manual fondling of the child, or he could have fondled the boy’s privates without penetration of his anus. It is nevertheless the majority opinion, and the holding here, that the trial court lacked jurisdiction under the doctrine of autrefois acquit. It is abundantly clear that this defense, if valid, may be raised for the first time as here on appeal. See Fry v. State, 98 Tenn. 323, 39 S.W. 231. It is hoped for the sake of clarity that a decision from our Supreme Court will at some early time resolve the issue that I, at least, feel confronts the courts in the overall problem discussed here.

Although reversal must result from the status of the case discussed above, it is in order for us to pass upon the remaining assignments of error; and we now proceed to do so with unanimity.

We find no error in the admission of medical testimony as to the injuries sustained by the victim.

Without merit also are the assignments of error challenging the sufficiency of the evidence. We sustain the trial judge in his ruling that the victim, who was seven years of age at the time of the trial, was competent as a witness; and his proof to the effect that the defendant stuck something up his bottom, coupled with testimony of his mother and others as to his condition that night when blood was observed in the anal cavity, although disputed by the defendant, raises a direct issue of fact for resolution by the jury. Although the conviction must be reversed, we cannot say that the competent evidence admitted for consideration of the jury preponderates against its verdict.

During cross examination of the mother of the victim, the estranged wife of the defendant who was at the time of the alleged crime involved in bitterly contested domestic relations litigation with the defendant, she testified that she had never heard of a person’ named Herman Hal-lauer, Sr. Later the same question was asked Mrs. Dix’s son born to her prior to the marriage to the defendant; and he also denied any knowledge of such a person, but admitted under further interrogation that the person known as Herman Hal-lauer was his father and was listed on his birth certificate as such. The trial judge ruled that the defense could not call the aforementioned Herman Hallauer as a rebuttal witness to impeach the credibility of Mrs. Dix. Any error involved here under the disposition we make of the appeal is moot, although it seems fairly obvious that the witness was suspected of testifying falsely as to her intimacy with Mr. Hal-lauer to cover up conduct the defense considered sexually improper on her part that may or may not have reflected on the weight the jury gave to her testimony.

Another assignment of error would force reversal of this case and presents in classic form the issue involved in admitting, over objection, evidence of other criminal activity on the part of the defendant. A 19 year old step-son of the defendant was permitted to testify that some five years before, the defendant who was on trial for sexually fondling his own five [246]*246year old son offered to commit fellatio on the witness.

Counsel for the State made no bones about why this evidence was offered. In a candid discussion outside the presence of the jury, the Assistant District Attorney said during successful argument:

“It is material to show that this man is charged with assault and battery with intent to fondle his own blood child. It is hard for these twelve Gentlemen of the jury to conceive of such a thing. It is such a case that I feel that what this witness would testify to goes to show that this defendant has done things in the past that have sexual tendencies out of the ordinary.

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629 S.W.2d 20 (Court of Appeals of Tennessee, 1981)
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532 S.W.2d 937 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Tennessee, 1975)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
472 S.W.2d 243, 4 Tenn. Crim. App. 412, 1971 Tenn. Crim. App. LEXIS 407, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dix-v-state-tenncrimapp-1971.