State v. Carpenter

115 S.W. 1008, 216 Mo. 442, 1909 Mo. LEXIS 344
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedFebruary 2, 1909
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 115 S.W. 1008 (State v. Carpenter) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Carpenter, 115 S.W. 1008, 216 Mo. 442, 1909 Mo. LEXIS 344 (Mo. 1909).

Opinion

FOX, J.

This is an appeal on the part of the defendant from a judgment of conviction in the criminal court of Jackson county, Missouri, of grand larceny.

On the 28th day of December, 1906, at the September term of the criminal court of Jackson county, at Kansas City, the prosecuting attorney filed, in open court, an information, properly verified, charging Harvey Adair and M. F. Carpenter with the crime of burglary in the second degree and grand larceny. The offense, as charged, consisted in breaking into a toolhouse belonging to C. A. Harris in Kansas City, and taking therefrom numerous carpenter tools, the property of divers persons, of the aggregate value of $113.55. On the 11th day of June, 1907, the defendant was duly arraigned and entered his plea of not guilty. On the 9th day of October, 1907, during the September term of said court, the trial of this defendant, M. F. Carpenter, proceeded. The testimony developed upon the trial of said cause tended to establish substantially the following state of facts:

On the 2d day of December, 1906, the firm of Harris & Hogue, contractors and builders, were engaged in constructing a livery barn for Eyler Brothers at 1712 McG-ee street in Kansas City, having in their employ several carpenters. They had there a small building on wheels, the property of A. C. Harris of said firm, which was used for the purpose of storing the tools of the workmen employed upon said building. At about five o’clock of that day, which was Saturday, the workmen on said building finished their day’s work and assembled their tools in said toolhouse, the door of which was locked by means of a staple, a hasp and a padlock. The next morning the door of said toolhouse was found open, the staple had been [445]*445broken, and tbe lock removed and thrown away, and a large number of tools of said workmen were gone. On the same day, which was Sunday, two officers observed the defendant in an alley, in said city, carrying carpenter’s tools in his pockets and under his arms. As defendant recognized the officers, he turned and made rapid steps to get away, but they arrested him and took him to the police station. When they first asked defendant where he got the tools, he said they were his; later, however, he said he got them from a man by the name of Harvey Adair. On defendant’s person at the time of his arrest they found a pawn ticket, which had been issued to him the same day for carpenter’s tools. The officers learned the location of the room which then was occupied by Adair. For sometime prior to a few'days before that time, defendant had been occupying the same room with Adair. Under the bed in said room was found a chest of tools, and in the bed were found other tools, and at the pawnshops numerous tools were also- found, all of which tools, as thus found on defendant’-s person, those found in the room and those found in the pawnshops, were positively identified as being the property of the persons mentioned in the information. It is also shown in evidence that on said Sunday morning defendant was at said room.

Defendant introduced several witnesses whose testimony tended to prove that on Friday night before the Sunday afternoon in question, defendant went to Pitts-burg, Kansas, distant about one hundred and thirty miles, or about four or five hours’ ride by rail from Kansas City, and that he left Fort Scott for Kansas City after one o’clock on said Sunday morning, arriving at Kansas City about seven o’clock a. m. Defendant himself testified to the same effect, and he said that Sunday morning as he was walking down the street, soon after his arrival at Kansas City, he met a man named Smith with a bundle of tools, who stopped [446]*446him and asked him if he knew where he conld pawn the tools. Defendant testified that he gave Smith some directions about pawn shops, but Smith made some excuse as to why he did not wish to go to the pawnshop, and defendant himself undertook to pawn the tools, and did pawn them for Smith. He admitted having been at the said room on that Sunday morning, where he met Harvey Adair and Smith, who had given him the package of tools to pawn. Defendant said that the three talked in the room for a time, when they loaded him up with tools and sent him out to pawn them and get more money with which to buy liquor. That was the load of tools he was carrying when arrested. He denied positively that he burglarized the toolhouse, or that he took and carried away the tools in question, and claimed that he never had heard of the burglary and stealing of the tools until after he was arrested. A signed statement made by the defendant was identified by him, and introduced in evidence by the State as follows :

“Kansas City, Mo., Dec. 3, 1906.
“My name is M. F. Carpenter. I am fifty years old. I am a painter. The last two weeks I have not been working any; my little boy has been sick. My boy is at his grandmother’s at Pittsburg, Kansas; he has been there about three.or four weeks. Yesterday I met a man at Eighteenth and Grand. I did not know the man’s name. I had met him once or twice at Tralle’s saloon. He was a little taller than me, and I think he had blue eyes. He had a package of tools; they were wrapped up' in overalls. It was Sunday morning about nine o’clock. He told me to take them down to the pawnshop and sell them and they would get a drink; for me to just sell them for the best I could get. He said he didn’t want to go to the pawnshop, because he had already sold some stuff there. I took the tools to the pawnshop twice, and got $2.50' altogether. He gave me fifty cents. This man gave me [447]*447the package of tools I had on me when I was arrested, but I have not seen him since. I never asked him where he lived, or where he got the stuff. I make this statement because it is the truth. No threats or promises have been made to me. M. P. Carpenter. ’ ’

No evidence was offered by defendant as to his general good character.

At the close of the testimony the court fully presented the cause to the jury by its instructions and the cause was submitted to them and a verdict was returned by them finding the defendant guilty of grand larceny only, and assessing his punishment at two years in the State penitentiary.

Timely motions for new trial and in arrest of judgment were filed and by the court overruled. Sentence and judgment were entered of record in accordance with the verdict, and from this judgment the defendant prosecuted this appeal, and the record is now before us for consideration.

OPINION.

The appellant is not represented in this court; hence, we are not favored with any brief or even suggestions of any complaints of error during the progress of the trial.' However, in pursuance of the provisions of the statute which requires this court to examine the record to the end that it may be determined as to whether or not any substantial error was committed, we have carefully considered the disclosures of the record in detail and will give the legal propositions disclosed such attention as their importance requires.

I.

We have examined the information upon which this judgment rests and find that every essential element necessary to constitute the offense is charged [448]*448in such, language as has frequently met the approval of this court. [R. S. 1899, sec. 1886; State v. Watson, 141 Mo. 338.]

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234 S.W.2d 556 (Supreme Court of Missouri, 1950)
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Bluebook (online)
115 S.W. 1008, 216 Mo. 442, 1909 Mo. LEXIS 344, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-carpenter-mo-1909.