Smith v. State

100 N.W. 806, 72 Neb. 345, 1904 Neb. LEXIS 198
Nebraska Supreme Court·Decided September 22, 1904·No. No. 13,657·Published·Cited by 5 cases

Opinion

Holcomb, C. J.

Plaintiffs in error, defendants in the court below, were informed against and convicted of the offense of an assault with the intent to commit a robbery. The sufficiency of the information to support a judgment of conviction is challenged on the ground that the intent with which the assault was committed is not sufficiently and specifically charged in the information. The charging portion of the information is “that on the 22d day of September, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and three, John D. Smith and James Gaughan, late' of the county of Douglas aforesaid, in the county of Douglas and state of Nebraska aforesaid, then and there being, then and there in and upon one Henry Herman unlawfully, feloniously, forcibly, and by violence did make an assault, and then and there with menaces, forcibly and with violence, feloniously did attempt to take from the person of the said Henry Herman, and against his will, thirty-five cents (35-100) in money, of the value of thirty-five cents (35-100), the personal property of the said Henry Herman, with the intent of them, the said John D. Smith and James Gaughan, then 'and there feloniously, forcibly and violently from the person of him, the said Henry Herman, against his will to steal, take and carry away said property; contrary to the form of the statute in such cases made and provided, and against the peace and dignity of the state of Nebraska.” It is argued that the gist of the offense sought to be charged consists in the intent with which the assault was committed; that such intent must be distinctly alleged and proved and that there is no intent whatever alleged as to the assault charged in the information in the case at bar. It is urged that the latter clause wherein it is charged after the alleged attempt at robbery that it was with the intent of the defendants “then and there feloniously, forcibly, and violently from the person of him the said Henry Herman, against his will to steal, take and [347] carry away said property” has no connection with the alleged assault, and that such intent as therein alleged cannot refer back and show the intent with which the alleged assault was committed. It is the well settled doctrine in this state, that in charging the commission of an offense in an indictment or information it is not necessary that the exact Avords of the statute be used, provided the Avords employed are the equivalents in meaning of those contained in the statute. Whitman v. State, 17 Neb. 224; Kirk v. Bowling, 20 Neb. 263; Hodgkins v. State, 36 Neb. 160; Wagner v. State, 43 Neb. 1; Bartley v. State, 53 Neb. 310; Carrall v. State, 53 Neb. 431. Section 14 of the criminal code provides that, if any person shall assault another Avith intent to commit a robbery, every person so offending shall be imprisoned, etc. It is clear that the gravamen of the offense sought to be charged in the information in the case at bar is the intent of the accused to commit a robbery; that this intent is the very essence of the crime and must be charged explicitly. The allegation of intent cannot be aided by intendments. O'Connor v. State, 46 Neb. 165; State v. Hughes, 38 Neb. 366; Smith v. State, 21 Neb. 552. It is, however, the duty of the court to give the Avords used in the information the ordinary and commonly accepted meaning, and, when vieAved in this light, if the Avords employed mean the same thing as those found in the language of the statute denouncing the offense, then the information should be sustained.

It is insisted by the state the allegation that the defendants, at the time of the assault, attempted Avith menaces, forcibly, and with Adolence to take from the person therein mentioned, the money described, is in and of itself sufficient tó charge an assault Avith intent ■ to commit a robbery. Idle Avord attempt, it is argued, is broader and more comprehensive than the word intent and includes within its meaning the latter term; that in charging the attempt to take from the person named, forcibly and with violence, the property mentioned, it is charged that the defendants not only intended to commit a robbery but [348] also went further and endeavored to carry out and to execute the intent. Authority entitled to weight and respectful consideration is not found wanting in support of this view as to the force and effect of the allegation of an attempt to commit a robbery found in the information. In Bishop, Criminal Procedure, sec. 80, the author, quoting an expression found in an opinion of the supreme court of Alabama (Prince State, 35 Ala. 367), says:

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

Smith v. State, 100 N.W. 806, 72 Neb. 345, 1904 Neb. LEXIS 198 (Neb. 1904).

100 N.W. 806 (Smith v. State) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

Hans v. State
22 N.W.2d 385 (Nebraska Supreme Court, 1946)
MacDonald v. State
246 N.W. 716 (Nebraska Supreme Court, 1933)
Cooper v. State
243 N.W. 837 (Nebraska Supreme Court, 1932)
State v. Western
231 N.W. 657 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1930)
Cirul v. State
200 S.W. 1088 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 1918)