State v. Gabriel

256 S.W. 765, 301 Mo. 365, 1923 Mo. LEXIS 137
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedDecember 3, 1923
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 256 S.W. 765 (State v. Gabriel) 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. Gabriel, 256 S.W. 765, 301 Mo. 365, 1923 Mo. LEXIS 137 (Mo. 1923).

Opinion

*369 DAYID E. BLAIR, J.

Defendant was convicted in the Criminal Court of Greene County of the crime of assaulting and wounding one Gordon Pierce with an automatic pistol, thereby endangering his life. Trial by jury resulted in a verdict of guilty as charged, and punishment by imprisonment in the county jail for twelve months and by a fine of one hundred dollars. After moving unsuccessfully for a new trial and in arrest of judgment, defendant was duly sentenced upon such verdict and thereafter appealed. This court has jurisdiction of the case because the conviction was for a crime punishable by imprisonment in the penitentiary, even though such punishment was not imposed by the • jury. [State v. Woodson, 248 Mo. 705; State v. Underwood, 254 Mo. 469.]

A careful reading of the record has resulted in the conclusion that the facts immediately attending the difficulty, both’ from the viewpoint of the State and from the viewpoint of defendant, are fairly set forth in the statement of facts in the brief of the learned Attorney-General, from which we quote as follows:

“The evidence introduced on behalf of the State tended to prove the following:

“On the morning of December 2, 1921, in Greene County, Missouri, N. W. Pierce and his son, Gordon, were working about the house of the older Pierce, and defendant, John Gabriel, drove up in a wagon in front of the house and stopped and began making signs with his hand up to his face. The Pierces were about thirty feet from the road where defendant was. Gordon Pierce, the son, observing this conduct on the part of defendant, told him to drive on down the road, whereupon the defendant said, ‘God damn you, I don’t have to, I own as much of this road as you do,’ and pulled back his sweater *370 and ran Ms hand into his pocket. Gordon Pierce then picked np a rock and threw it at defendant and hit him about the top of the hip. Defendant then climbed over the front of the wagon and stepped down on the ground. He then put his left hand upon the wagon body and the other hand over it and began shooting into the Pierce yard, which resulted in striking Gordon Pierce three times. Five or six’ shots were fired. Two shots struck Gordon in the right leg and one in the other knee. The bullets penetrated entirely through the leg. The wounds were dressed and treated by Dr. Arthur Knabb. Two of the shots went past him about the level of his head back toward his father and uncle, who were just back of him.

“It appeared that the Pierces and defendant were unfriendly and had had difficulty prior to this time about a road which crossed a part of the Pierce land, and about Pierce’s stock bothering defendant, which the defendant put up and refused to release until he was paid for his trouble in doing so; and that the defendant made serious threats at various times towards the Pierces. It also appears in evidence that the defendant had been carrying a pistol prior to this time as result of the feeling existing between them, which fact was known to' the Pierces. The pistol was a thirty-two automatic Colts, and held nine shots.

“The evidence offered on behalf of the defendant tended to prove the following:

“On the morning of the shooting defendant had been to a neighbor’s with his wagon, and team and about ten o’clock, while on his way back, when he got to the corner of the Pierce yard, he saw old man Pierce and his son, Gordon, and a man by the name of Thompson, who was Pierce’s brother-in-law, out at the comer of the house, talking, and Gordon was looking at the defendant with a very hard stare, and then started to head him off in front of the house. When Gordon got within three or four feet of the fence he stopped' and picked up three rocks and said, ‘You get down in the road, you God damn son-of-a-bitch, and I will knock you God damn *371 head off. ’ He then threw a rock and jnst missed defendant ’s head, and threw other rocks jnst as fast as he conld. Thompson got ahead of the horses when defendant started to get his horses and dodged a rock, and Gordon threw another time and hit the horses, and then he hit defendant on the hip. Defendant then tumbled out of the wagon over the front wheel. He had his pistol in a belt and holster in his overalls, but did not draw or attempt to draw it until he was knocked out of the wagon and was still being thrown at. He then reached up and got hold of his wagon and pulled himself up and drew his gun and turned it into Gordon’s legs, shooting at him, but not trying to kill him. At that time Gordon had thrown five rocks and had another up ready to throw when defendant shot. Defendant shot six times from a thirty-two Colts automatic, which held nine shots, but had only six in it at the time. After emptying the pistol defendant took hold of the wagon with the hand that had the pistol in it, and the lines with the other, and started on up the road toward his home, which was only a short distance from the Pierces.”

Previous threats of the Pierces and of the defendant were shown. A state of bad feeling had existed between them for some time. The familiar array of character witnesses was used, both by the State and the defendant, to show that defendant’s reputation for truth and veracity was good or bad, depending apparently on the state of feeling of the various witnesses toward defendant and the Pierces. The issue of the character of Gordon Pierce and his father extended to their reputations for turbulence, quarrelsomeness, etc., as well as for truth and veracity. The usual division of opinion appeared and left the issue in such shape that the jury might well have declared a draw.

I. The sufficiency of the information is assailed. Omitting formal parts, it reads as follows:

“O. J. Page, Prosecuting Attorney within and for. the County of Greene, in the State of Missouri, under *372 his oath of office informs the court that John Gabriel, late of the county and state aforesaid, on the 2nd day of December A. D. 1921, at the County of Greene and State of Missouri, did then and there willfully and feloniously make an assault in and upon one Gordon Pierce, with an automatic pistol, loaded with powder and metal bullets, and did then and there shoot and wound him the said Gordon Pierce and by said acts of assaulting and shooting, did then and there feloniously and unlawfully endanger the life of the said Gordon Pierce.

“Contrary to the form,of the statute in such cases made and provided and against the peace and dignity of the State.”

The learned Attorney-General contends that said information is based on Section 3264, Revised Statutes 1919. Defendant claims it is based upon Section 3263, and is insufficient in that it fails to charge that the assault was made with felonious intent.

If the information is drawn under Section 3263, the contention of defendant that said information is fatally defective, in that it does not charge that the assault was made with felonious intent, would present a point for serious consideration. But we think the information sufficiently charges an offense under Section 3264.

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Bluebook (online)
256 S.W. 765, 301 Mo. 365, 1923 Mo. LEXIS 137, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-gabriel-mo-1923.