Elmendorf v. Commonwealth

188 S.W. 483, 171 Ky. 410, 1916 Ky. LEXIS 378
CourtCourt of Appeals of Kentucky
DecidedOctober 11, 1916
StatusPublished
Cited by32 cases

This text of 188 S.W. 483 (Elmendorf v. Commonwealth) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Elmendorf v. Commonwealth, 188 S.W. 483, 171 Ky. 410, 1916 Ky. LEXIS 378 (Ky. Ct. App. 1916).

Opinion

Opinion op the Court by

Judge Hurt

Affirming.

The appellant, Ernest Elmendorf, was convicted in the McCracken circuit court, of the crime of wilful murder, and Ms penalty fixed at imprisonment during his lifetime. The motion made by him for a new trial having been overruled by the circuit court, he has appealed to [411]*411this court. The evidence heard by the trial court presents many contradictions, and facts, which are unusual. On the night of February 2nd, 1916, Al Redman, Pete Ingram and Dick Iseman were in the saloon owned by Theo. Peters, on Kentucky avenue, in the city of Paducah. The front of the saloon was upon Kentucky avenue, between 10th and 11th streets. There was a side door to the saloon, upon the west side of it, which opened out upon an alley which extended from Kentucky avenue to Broadway. The side door was composed, in part, of glass, which had once been friezed over with a substance which prevented a view through the glass, but at the time in question, this substance had rubbed off to such an extent, that enabled any one to see through, the door. To the west of the saloon, a restaurant fronted on Kentucky avenue, and the building in which the restaurant was kept extended in the direction of Broadway. The room next to the restaurant was unoccupied, but the two following rooms in the building were occupied by William Malone, who lived there alone. The door by which Malone entered the rooms occupied by him opened upon the alley, which extended from Kentucky avenue to Broadway, and at a distance of from fifty to seventy-five feet from the side door of the saloon, which opened upon the side of the alley. A fence extended alongside the saloon between it and the alley, but there was an opening in the fence, four feet in width, at the side door of the saloon, which permitted egress from the alley to the side door of the saloon. On the night of February 2nd, at about fifteen to twenty minutes after ten o’clock, A1 Redman, who was the bartender in the saloon, was engaged in the rear end of the room in which the saloon was kept, and Pete Ingram and Dick Iseman were sitting, engaged in conversation. Iseman’s back was toward the 'side door of the saloon. Just at this time the side door opened and a man, who appeared to be about five feet and ten inches in height, and about one hundred and thirty-five to one hundred and forty pounds in weight, came into the saloon through the door. The intruder had a toboggan cap, gray in color, with two red bands encircling it, and with holes cut in it to permit his seeing. The cap was drawn over his head so as to obscure his features, except, his eyes, which were brown in color. No perforations were made in the cap for his nose or mouth. He had a large [412]*412pistol, apparently a No. 45 single action Colts, in his hand. He immediately presented the pistol at Eedman, with a command for him to throw np his hands and to back up to the register, in which the money in the saloon was kept. When Eedman realized the situation, he held up his hands and proceeded to do as directed. The intruder then commanded Ingram and Iseman to throw: up their hands, and Ingram instantly obeyed, but Iseman, who had but one arm, started toward his assailant, extending his arm toward him, with the declaration, that he would not throw up his hands to any one. The robber then discharged his pistol at Iseman, giving him a mortal wound, from which he died in a few minutes. The robber then said: “That is what a d — d fool gets for resisting,” and warned Eedman that if he resisted, he would kill him, too. He then required Eedman to hand to him a No. 38 Smith & Wesson hammerless pistol, which was in a drawer, and to place the drawer of the register within his reach, from which the robber took the money it contained, and then immediately departed out of the side door, taking with him the money and the No. 38 Smith & Wesson pistol. The robber was, further, described as being dressed in a brown coat, and having a long, slender hand, with no indications of having been employed in manual labor, and with fingers one-fourth of an inch in length greater than the fingers of A1 Eedman, and with having a coarse voice, but the sound of it was obstructed by the cap over his face.

Evidence was heard to the effect, that between 10:35 p. m. and 10:40 p. m., the appellant, Elmendorf, came into the front of the saloon, and there appeared to be talking over the telephone, which was there, and inquired of Eedman what had happened, and when told that Eedman hacl been robbed and Iseman killed, he did not go back to or make any inquiry in regard to Iseman, although he was an acquaintance, but went immediately out of the saloon. On the morning of the day following, Malone was summoned by the police to the city hall to be interviewed by the chief of police. He went to the city hall, but the chief of police-not being there, he returned to the saloon or to his home. He was then arrested upon suspicion of having knowledge of the crime or of some connection with it and confined in jail. Upon the advice of his nephew and his attorney, he then, as he claims, revealed his knowledge of the perpetration [413]*413of the crime. His statement implicated the appellant as the perpetrator of it, and he was then arrested and indicted for the crime.

The indictment contains four counts. The first count charges that the appellant, together with other persons, whose names are to the grand jury unknown, killed Iseman. The second count charges that the killing was done by a person whose name is to the grand jury unknown, and that the appellant was an accessory before the fact to the crime. The third count charges the actual killing of Iseman to have been done by a person to the grand jury unknown, and that appellant was an aider and abettor of such unknown person in the commission of the crime. The fourth count charges that appellant conspired with another person or persons, whose, name or names are to the grand jury unknown, to kill and murder Iseman, and that in pursuance and furtherance of the conspiracy, Iseman was killed by one of said persons. To this indictment the appellant plead not guilty.

The instructions to the jury related to the guilt of the appellant, as charged in the first and third connts of the indictment, only. The instructions, in substance, directed the jury, that if it should believe from the evh dence, to the exclusion of a reasonable doubt that th<v appellant, or he together with another person or persons, whose names were unknown, did feloniously, wilfully, and with malice aforethought kill Iseman by shooting him in the manner described in the indictment, and by reason of which he immediately died; or if it should believe from the evidence, to the exclusion of a reasonable doubt, that a person, whose name was unknown, feloniously, wilfully, and with malice aforethought, shotIseman, with etc., from which he immediately died, and believed from the evidence, to the exclusion of a reasonable doubt, that the appellant was then and there actually or constructively present, feloniously and with malice aforethought, aiding, abetting, and assisting such other person in the shooting and killing of Iseman, to find him guilty.

It will be observed that the instruction permitted appellant to be convicted, only, in the event that he did the killing either alone or with the assistance of others, or in the event that some other person actually did the killing and appellant was an aider and abettor of such person in so doing.

[414]

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Bluebook (online)
188 S.W. 483, 171 Ky. 410, 1916 Ky. LEXIS 378, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/elmendorf-v-commonwealth-kyctapp-1916.