Scott v. State

1941 OK CR 103, 115 P.2d 763, 72 Okla. Crim. 305, 1941 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 103
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma
DecidedJuly 16, 1941
DocketNo. A-9824.
StatusPublished
Cited by21 cases

This text of 1941 OK CR 103 (Scott 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
Scott v. State, 1941 OK CR 103, 115 P.2d 763, 72 Okla. Crim. 305, 1941 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 103 (Okla. Ct. App. 1941).

Opinion

JONES, J.

The defendant, Jack Demp Scott, was charged by information in the district court of Stephens *306 county with the crime of robbery with firearms, second offense; was tried, convicted, and sentenced to serve a term of 15 years in the State Penitentiary, from which judgment and sentence he appeals to this court.

Counsel for defendant argues that this case should be reversed for the following reasons:

(1) The evidence is insufficient to support the conviction.

(2) Material prejudice to defendant was caused by misconduct of counsel for state.

(3) The court erred in refusing to grant a continuance.

On the night of July 10, 1939, E. L. Williams and his wife were robbed with firearms in their home by Calvin Lee Camp and Benny Peoples; who pleaded guilty to the crime, and a third person alleged by the state to be the defendant in this case.

Calvin Lee Camp, who was serving a term in the penitentiary for participation in the offense with which defendant is here charged, was the principal witness for the state. His testimony, stated briefly, is that on the afternoon of July 10, 1939, he was at the home of Margaret Nottingham when defendant and Benny Peoples drove up in defendant’s car. The car, a two-door sedan, was “a 1931 Model A Ford, not blue nor black, á soft of faded color;” with yellow wheels. In the automobile were a sawed-off shotgun and a pistol. Leonard Nottingham was present and asked about the shotgun. Peoples put it under the front seat. Camp started back to Lawton with Peoples and defendant. On the way they discussed the proposed robbery. In Lawton the three of them went to a barber shop where witness had his shoes shined. He *307 stated that he had no conversation with the porter. They went from Lawton to Marlow where they bought some gasoline. Camp and Benny Peoples got out of the car and had a conversation with the filling station attendant about changing a $10 bill and a $20 bill. Defendant remained in the car.

They went then to the home of the prosecuting witness, Williams. Defendant knocked on the door. A light was turned on above the door. Defendant stated he wanted, to buy some whisky, and Williams brought it to the door. When the whisky was handed to defendant, the two accomplices covered Williams with the pistol and a shotgun. Peoples had the shotgun and Camp, the pistol. Defendant did not have a gun. They made Williams and his wife lie on a bed with their hands up. Defendant searched the house. He found $30 in money, an old type shotgun which was described at length, a flashlight, and in taking Williams’ watch from his pocket he jerked off the chain ring. They also took 57 pints of whisky. Before leaving, the three men broke the telephone connection, put Williams’ car out of commission, and locked prosecuting witness and his wife in a clothes closet.

When the three reached Lawton, defendant brought the money out of his pocket and divided it. They hid the whisky on Cache creek that night. The next day they went back in defendant’s car, but were unable to find the whisky. On the second day after the robbery, they went to certain pawnships in Lawton in an effort to dispose of the things they had taken from the Williams home. Defendant had the watch. They tried to sell it to Camp’s stepfather. Defendant said that it had been pawned to him for $2.50.

Camp’s stepfather had a 1931 Ford, a two-door sedan, black with red wheels. Witness stated that the only time *308 he had driven the car was the day he married Margaret Nottingham. Witness further stated that he had never been to El Reno in his life.

E. L. Williams, the prosecuting witness, and his wife testified substantially the same as Camp as to the facts of the actual robbery. Williams had known defendant when he was a boy, but had not seen him for several years. He could not identify him positively as being- the third member of the band that robbed him. He stated that the man had a dark complexion and red hair like the defendant, but seemed to weigh a little more than defendant weighed at the time of the trial.

Mrs. Williams was unable to identify defendant. She knew that the third man had dark hair and was slow of speech. Both Mr. and Mrs. Williams explained their inability to identify the third party who' searched the house, because the other two men had guns on them and their attention was directed at them while the third party took a flashlight and used it to make a search of the front room.

Leonard Nottingham stated that on July 10, 1939, about 4:30 in the afternoon, he saw Peoples, Camp, and the defendant at his father’s house. They were working on the brakes of a Model A Ford, that was bluish-green in color. He saw a sawed-off shotgun in the car. Thei three boys drove off towards Lawton. The car they were driving was not the car of W. L. Camp, stepfather of Calvin Lee Camp.

Glenn Rollins testified that on July 10, 1939, around midnight, Peoples and Camp were driven by a third person to' the filling station Avhere he worked. They bought some gasoline and had a conversation about changing a $10 bill and a $20 bill. Witness could not identify the *309 man who was driving the car, which was a Model A Ford sedan of a dark, faded color.

W. L„ Camp testified that on the 11th or 12th of July, 1939, his stepson, Calvin, inquired of him as to whether he wanted to buy a watch, and he said he would if it was cheap. Calvin took a. watch from defendant and showed it to him; then returned it to' defendant. This: watch was a Waltham with an “S” on the back, the ring) was missing, and undoubtedly belonged to the prosecuting witness. This witness further testified that his stepson had never driven his car.

Buby Hise, who worked at Pennington’s Pawn Shop in Lawton, stated that on July 11th, Peoples, Camp and defendant came into the store and wanted to trade an old shotgun, described as being the one stolen from Williams, and to sell the watch. Peoples had both of the articles, but they all three took part in the attempted trade.

Alma Yates testified, also, that they were in the store on that date.

Defendant offered an alibi, supported by the testimony of accomplice, Benny Peoples. The jury evidently did not believe the alibi.

It is necessary for this court to' decide whether or not there was testimony corroborating accomplice, Camp, which tended to connect defendant with the commission of the crime.

No witness for the state offered direct corroboration of Camp that the defendant actually took part in the robbery. Nottingham stated that defendant started with the other two toward Lawton on the late afternoon of the day of the robbery in a car answering the description of the car which defendant drove. Bqllins corroborates *310 Camp as to the description of the car they were in at Marlow before the robbery, bnt could not identify defendant. The prosecuting Avitness and his wife corroborate Camp on every point concerning the robbery, except as to the identity of defendant. Ruby Hise, Alma Yates, and W, L.

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Related

Glaze v. State
1977 OK CR 206 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1977)
Scott v. State
1970 OK CR 62 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1970)
Hinex v. State
1966 OK CR 109 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1966)
Barber v. State
1963 OK CR 103 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1963)
Kyle v. State
1961 OK CR 116 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1961)
Hardesty v. State
1955 OK CR 132 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1955)
Martin v. State
1950 OK CR 110 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1950)
Roberson v. State
1950 OK CR 60 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1950)
Potter v. State
1950 OK CR 53 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1950)
Rushing v. State
1948 OK CR 22 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1948)
Bird v. State
1947 OK CR 150 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1947)
Jennings v. State
1947 OK CR 44 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1947)
Andrews v. State
1947 OK CR 43 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1947)
Young v. State
1947 OK CR 35 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1947)
Tillman v. State
1946 OK CR 48 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1946)
Richardson v. State
1943 OK CR 21 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1943)
Darnell v. State
1941 OK CR 153 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1941)
Blumhoff v. State
1941 OK CR 112 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1941)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
1941 OK CR 103, 115 P.2d 763, 72 Okla. Crim. 305, 1941 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 103, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/scott-v-state-oklacrimapp-1941.