Keady v. People

32 Colo. 57
CourtSupreme Court of Colorado
DecidedSeptember 15, 1903
DocketNo. 4517
StatusPublished
Cited by21 cases

This text of 32 Colo. 57 (Keady v. People) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Colorado primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Keady v. People, 32 Colo. 57 (Colo. 1903).

Opinion

Mr. Justice Steele

delivered the opinion of the court.

The defendant having been convicted of an assault with intent to murder, brings the case here for review.

Upon the impaneling of the jury, and after the prosecution and defendant had passed the jurors for cause, the court of his own motion examined at length the juror Campion as to his citizenship, and, at the conclusion of the examination, excused Campion from attendance upon the court. This is alleged to be an error, but it does not appear that by reason of the action of the court the defendant has not had a fair and impartial trial by a competent jury, that the district attorney exhausted all his challenges, nor that [59]*59by tbe action of tbe court tbe panel was depleted. Tbe defendant therefore has not been prejudiced by the action of the court.

The other errors assigned relate to the admission of testimony and to the giving and refusing of instructions. To understand these objections, it is necessary to know the circumstances of the alleged assault as presented by the people and as presented by the defendant.

Robert Telfer, a policeman of the city of Lead-ville, was shot and severely wounded about eight o’clock in the morning of the 8th of November, 1901, upon opening the door of a hack then standing upon •one of the streets of Leadville and in which the defendant was riding. After stating that he went up to the hack for the purpose of ascertaining whether the defendant was carrying concealed weapons, Telfer testified as follows:

“I opened the door of the hack, and at the time I did, I was going to excuse myself; I got out about ‘Ex — ,’ that is about all. Mr. Keady pulled the gun out, had it right up against my breast, probably two inches from my breast.
Q. — Where did he take it from, if any place? A. — He had it on his lap in his overcoat, over the gun.
Q. — Go. on. A. — As soon as I saw the gun, I made for it, and caught the gun by the barrel, with my finger and thumb against the chamber, just in that shape (showing), and pushed the gun away to the left, downwards at the same time and he pulled— the trigger was pulled.
Q. — By you? A. — No, sir; by Mr. Keady; and the gun went off and struck the iron plate on the hack and entered my leg.”

The defendant’s testimony upon direct examination was as follows:

[60]*60“Q. — You may state your name to the jury. A. — Tom Keady.
Q. — Where were you horn? A. — Pittsburg, Pennsylvania.
Q. — You may state to the jury if on the 8th day of November, I believe, you came to Leadville? A. —Yes, sir.
Q. — Just go on and state to the jury what happened that morning, from the time you got off the train. A. — Until the time I was arrested?
Q. — Yes. A. — I was the last passenger getting out of the coach; I stepped out of the coach; there was a cab standing there and I stepped to the cab door, I said to the cabman, ‘Drive me to 208 West Second street.’ So when I got there, my overcoat I had laid on the front seat, and that revolver I had laid it under the overcoat, in between; so in going up, I takes the overcoat and gun, walks in, and touches the button; I just touched it. I realized I wanted a drink, to get a little vial of some kind; I turned round and told the cab-driver to drive me up town to some first-class saloon, as I wanted to get a drink. Went ánd stopped in front of the Pioneer. So I had ordered a drink, this Mr. -, he comes and says, i God damn you, get out of here, ’ and grabbed me; Í reached for that gun and throwed it down on that, and he grabs it, and I grabs, and I shot that fingernail off (showing), you can see the finger; it is all healed; then I was arrested; then he had that gun, they hit me over the head and arms^-I throwed up my arms — they took me off to jail.
Q. — I will ask you if you observed Mr. Telfer on the hack? A. — I asked the driver, I didn’t know whether — who he was; I told him I didn’t want him; he opened the door, and said, ‘ God damn you, get out of here, ’ he just caught on here and pulled me.
[61]*61Q.^-Where did he catch hold? A. — On this arm (showing).
Q. — Where were yon sitting; with that arm next to the door? A. — Next to the door, he had opened it.
Q. — Did you know Mr. Telfer? A. — No, sir; I never saw him before.
Q.- — At the time yon pnlled that gnn off, did yon have any intention of shooting him? A.^No; only to protect myself, and I didn’t know who the man was, ordering me in that way he did; he says, ‘ God damn yon, get ont of here. ’
Q. — What caused the gnn to go off? A. — I reached and picked it up, of course cocked and throwed it down that way, he grabs and I grabs.
Q. — Did yon shoot that gnn intentionally, or was it from the fact of the scuffle? A. — I don’t know whether he pnlled it off or I pnlled it off in the scuffle for the gun, or which one it was done it.
Q. — Yon had hold of it in a way that would shoot? A. — Yes, sir.
Q. — Was it the force of his blow knocking it down? A. — He just knocked down; my arms were all black and blue and everything afterwards; I didn’t know who the man was.
Q. — What else did he say to yon at that time, if anything? A. — He says, ‘God damn yon,’ and ‘damned cur,’ ‘yon dog,’ and he had a gnn; I didn’t know whether I was going to be murdered, or what; he said, ‘Yon dog, get ont of here’; called me every name he could think of; I didn’t know who the man was. ’ ’

William Campbell, a police officer of the city of Leadville, was permitted to testify, over the objection of the defendant, to a complaint made by one Irene Allen to the police department concerning the defendant. He said: “It was on the night of the 7th of November; I think it was about half past eleven, or [62]*62quarter past eleven — along there, Miss Allen came to me and showed me a telegram from Mr. Keady saying’, ‘I will he in on thé six o’clock train’ — or something to that effect — ‘in the morning’; and she was crying at the time, and she told me that she was afraid of this man, and she was afraid that this man was coming here to kill her. ‘Now, ’ she says, ‘ I want you to watch the train, and watch State street; he will come down State street when he comes here, ’ and, she says, ‘If he runs across me he is going to kill me.’- * * '* She said, ‘You will have to be careful, because he carries a gun, a '45-caliber revolver ’; she says, ‘You will have to look out for him because he is a bad man. ’ I didn’t say anything. Went and told Officer Telfer of it; I told him we would watch the trains in the morning, see if this man had a gun, if he had, take it away. ’ ’

It is urged that this was hearsay and that it contained statements prejudicial to the defendant. In the case of People v. Wilson,

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Bluebook (online)
32 Colo. 57, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/keady-v-people-colo-1903.