People v. Hodges

2 P.2d 174, 116 Cal. App. 61, 1931 Cal. App. LEXIS 339
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedAugust 6, 1931
DocketDocket No. 210.
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 2 P.2d 174 (People v. Hodges) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Hodges, 2 P.2d 174, 116 Cal. App. 61, 1931 Cal. App. LEXIS 339 (Cal. Ct. App. 1931).

Opinion

BARNARD, P. J.

The defendant Hodges was, jointly with Anthony W. Patton, E. T. McCoy and G. M. Hunter, charged with the crime of murder in an indictment returned by the grand jury of Imperial County. The defendant Hunter was never apprehended, the defendant Patton was given a separate trial, and the defendants Hodges and McCoy were tried together. The jury found the defendant Hodges guilty of manslaughter and, under an advisory instruction by the court, found the defendant McCoy not guilty. Defendant Hodges has appealed from the judgment and from an order denying his motion for a new trial.

The general facts relating to the offense of which the appellant was convicted, may be briefly summarized as follows: For about a week prior to December 8, 1930, be *64 tween 100 and 140 Filipinos had been living in the loft of an old barn in the city of Imperial. The presence of the Filipinos was resented by many persons in 'and around Imperial, to the extent that it had become a general topic of conversation on the streets and the resentment had become so pronounced that some of the talk amounted to veiled, if not open, threats against them. At about 8 o’clock on the evening of December 8, 1930, a bomb exploded in this barn, making a large hole in the dirt floor of the barn, particles of the bomb being driven through the floor of the loft and through the roof of the barn. Other particles passed through the side walls of the barn and into dwelling-houses on either side thereof. One piece of the bomb was found in a service station a half block away, having passed through the galvanized iron wall of the station. One piece of the bomb was blown through the body of Arriston Lampky, one of the Filipinos occupying the loft of the barn, resulting in his death a few hours later. Other particles of the bomb wounded three other Filipinos who were in the loft. The barn had a large door ten feet high by eighteen feet wide on the front end, and two windows on the sides. One of the Filipinos testified that about 8 o’clock, or a few minutes after that time, he heard something drop on the ground and that he saw an object there, approximately between twelve and eighteen inches long, which was smoking in the middle. Another Filipino testified that he heard something heavy drop, and that later, as he approached it, it exploded. Various witnesses fixed the time elapsing between the thud of the object falling on the ground and the explosion, at from three to six minutes.

Aside from the testimony of the co-defendant Patton, the record shows the following evidence tending to connect the appellant with the commission of the crime. The appellant had been prominent among those discussing the question of how to get rid of the Filipinos. He had solicited funds from various persons, to some of whom he did not tell what he proposed to do with the funds, while to others, he said it was “for the good of the valley”. To at least one, he said it was for “explosives or dynamite—I understood him to say he wanted to scare some Filipinos out. Not that he was going to but that some other people were”. A few days before the explosion appellant entered *65 the store of C. T. Gihson in Imperial, and asked for dynámite caps. Gibson said that he did not have any and suggested that he try the Imperial Valley Hardware Company, at El Centro. Another witness testified that several days before the explosion he heard the appellant say something about blowing up the Filipinos. Another witness testified that some time after 3 o’clock in the afternoon of December 8th, the appellant asked the witness if he would buy him a milk shake if he, the appellant, would knock the Filipinos out. One James Heath testified that about noon on December 8, 1930, he had a conversation with the appellant about some dynamite. He asked the appellant what he wanted the dynamite for and the appellant did not tell him. He told the appellant that he did not have any dynamite in his store in Imperial but that appellant could get it at the store in El Centro. A blacksmith named Ditto testified that about 10 o’clock on the morning of December 8, 1930, the appellant came to his shop alone, looking for a piece of pipe. The witness sent him to a junk pile outside of the shop and later the appellant returned with a piece of two and one-half inch pipe, sixteen inches long, with threads on one end. Appellant asked the witness if he could cut some threads on the other end of the pipe or if it would be cheaper to have the other end of the pipe welded closed. The witness told Mm the latter would be cheaper and that he could furnish a plug but that he would have to take it to another blacksmith to have it welded. The witness furnished a plug from a piece of shafting, the plug having had threads on it and also having a center hole made by reason of its having been set up in a lathe. A plug found at the scene of the explosion, and introduced into evidence, was identified by the witness as similar to the one he had furnished. The appellant left this blacksmith-shop with the pipe and plug, and some 20 or 30 minutes later returned with two other men, with the plug welded into the end of the pipe. At the request of the appellant, the witness drilled a hole about the middle of the pipe, returned it to appellant, and the men drove away. The witness asked the appellant what he wanted the pipe for, to which he replied that the witness would never know. Another 'blacksmith, George Merkle, testified that on December 8, 1930, a man came to Ms shop with a *66 piece of pipe and a plug; that at the request of this man he welded the plug into one end of the pipe; and that later three men came and took the pipe away with them. He identified the plug found at the scene of the explosion as in all respects similar to the plug he welded into the pipe that day. He first testified that he recognized three men in the courtroom as the three who had come to his shop, then that he was unable to tell which was which, and finally, on being asked if there was anyone in the courtroom whom he could identify as being one of the three, he replied: “I haven’t got no knowledge.” One Traxler, employed by the Imperial Valley Hardware Company at El Centro, testified that during the afternoon of December 8th the appellant came into the store, showing a piece of pipe for which he wanted to buy a cap. The witness got a cap to fit the pipe and then sold the appellant four pounds of dynamite, and also some blasting caps. The witness testified that the pipe was between fourteen and twenty inches long, plugged at one end by a welded plug and threaded on the other, and that he fitted the cap to the threaded end of the pipe. He also testified that the plug in the closed end of the pipe was similar to the one found at the scene of the explosion. This witness was corroborated by another clerk in the same store. It was established by a number of witnesses that about 7:30 o’clock in the evening of December 8, 1930, appellant went to a house about a half-mile away from the barn in question, where a man known as “Red” Hunter was playing cards with some companions. Appellant said to Red, “Are you ready?” Red answered, “No, I won’t be for an hour or two.” Appellant replied: “That will be too late.” A block and a half directly down an alley from the barn occupied by the Filipinos, were two pool-halls, one on each side of the alley with their back doors opposite each other. One Peters, testified that about 7 o’clock on this evening, at Salty’s pool-room, he played two or three games of pool with appellant and that appellant then left the pool-room.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

People v. King
240 Cal. App. 2d 389 (California Court of Appeal, 1966)
People v. McCoy
153 P.2d 315 (California Supreme Court, 1944)
People v. Mandell
120 P.2d 921 (California Court of Appeal, 1942)
People v. Keylon
10 P.2d 86 (California Court of Appeal, 1932)
People v. Emme
7 P.2d 183 (California Court of Appeal, 1932)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2 P.2d 174, 116 Cal. App. 61, 1931 Cal. App. LEXIS 339, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-hodges-calctapp-1931.