State v. Goodrick

519 P.2d 958, 95 Idaho 773, 1974 Ida. LEXIS 502
CourtIdaho Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 1, 1974
Docket11116
StatusPublished
Cited by17 cases

This text of 519 P.2d 958 (State v. Goodrick) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Idaho Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Goodrick, 519 P.2d 958, 95 Idaho 773, 1974 Ida. LEXIS 502 (Idaho 1974).

Opinion

*774 McFADDEN, Justice.

Daniel George Goodrick, the defendant-appellant, was charged with and following a trial before a jury was found guilty of the crimes of kidnapping in the second degree and of rape. Following entry of judgment of conviction and sentence to the penitentiary, Goodrick appealed to this court.

On appeal Goodrick contends in his assignments of error that the evidence is insufficient to sustain his convictions of rape and kidnapping in the second degree; that the trial court erred in failing to instruct the jury concerning the distinction between direct and circumstantial evidence, and that the trial court erred in allowing one of the state’s witnesses, Reed Dixon, to testify without first having his name endorsed on the information.

Concerning the assignments of error directed to the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain Goodrick’s conviction, the state in its presentation of the facts established the following.

Two Canadian couples, Mr. and Mrs. Percy Smith and Mr. and Mrs. James Galbraith, were traveling on vacation in a pickup camper when they stopped overnight in Post Falls on July 26, 1971. They parked their camper on a vacant lot adjacent to defendant Goodrick's mother’s home, at Goodrick’s invitation. During the afternoon and evening the two Canadian men and Goodrick had a few drinks together. After dinner Smith joined Good-rick and his mother and continued drinking with them in taverns in Post Falls. During the course of the evening Goodrick returned to the camper seeking an identification card for Smith to enable him to be served intoxicating liquor. At that time, the three who remained, Mrs. Smith (the prosecutrix) and the Galbraiths, had already retired and were awakened by Good-rick’s return.

About 5:00 a.m., Goodrick again returned to the camper and awakened the occupants stating to Mrs. Smith that her husband Percy had been arrested and was in jail in Coeur d’Alene and needed bail bond money. Mrs. Smith arose, dressed and accompanied him. The Galbraiths testified as to hearing Goodrick’s discussion with Mrs. Smith.

Mr. Smith testified that he became intoxicated during the evening and went to bed in a bunkhouse on the Goodrick property. When he awoke the next morning he found himself locked in the bunkhouse and he had to break out through a window. After Smith broke out, the Galbraiths knew things were wrong and called the sheriff’s office in Coeur d’Alene.

When Goodrick took Mrs. Smith with him, he was driving his mother’s car. He had some wine with him, which he drank. He left the main traveled road onto a dirt road, supposedly a short-cut to their destination. Mrs. Smith was fearful of his condition and asked to drive. Goodrick acceded to this request, and as they continued down the dirt road, the defendant revealed his intentions of raping her. Mrs. Smith pleaded with him, but he threatened her with a handgun (a BB or pellet gun similar in design to an “automatic” pistol) and a knife. Mrs. Smith stopped the car and again unsuccessfully pleaded with the defendant not to rape her. After the rape, Mrs. Smith picked up the handgun, struck the defendant and escaped. After Good-rick left, she returned to the scene and picked up the gun. Carrying the gun she again ran until she came upon Mr. and Mrs. Charles Sweitzer, who were camping on Brickel Creek. Mrs. Smith was in a state of shock and was crying for help. She gave the Sweitzers the gun, and they took her to Spirit Lake where they contacted police officers. The officers took Mrs. Smith to Coeur d’Alene where she met her husband and the Galbraiths.

Mrs. Smith told her story to the officers in the sheriff’s office. The officers arranged for Mrs. Smith to be examined by a physician. The physician examined her and took several vaginal smears. Later these vaginal smears were examined at a laboratory. . The doctor testified that he *775 examined one of the smears and found motile sperm. The doctor testified that it was his conclusion based on his examination of Mrs. Smith and from the examination of the smear, “* * * that there has been sex contact within probably four hours by the number, by the motility of the sperm that were noted.”

Although Goodrick gave an entirely different version of the facts and what transpired, it is the conclusion of the court that there was ample substantial, competent, although conflicting evidence before the jury to sustain the convictions of the crimes of which the defendant was found guilty. State v. Stevens, 93 Idaho 48, 454 P.2d 945 (1969); State v. Bullis, 93 Idaho 749, 472 P.2d 315 (1970).

The defendant further contends that Mrs. Smith, the prosecutrix, was impeached by proof of her having given evidence contradicting her testimony at trial. During her cross-examination, Mrs. Smith stated that the defendant held a gun on her when he forced her to park the car, get out, open the trunk, remove a sleeping bag and place it on the back seat. Defendant’s counsel during this cross-examination, submitted to Mrs. Smith and had her read into the record a portion of the testimony she gave at the preliminary hearing where she stated that the gun had been placed under the front seat of the car prior to her leaving the car to get the sleeping bag, and that the defendant threatened her with an open pocket knife during this time. Defendant asserts that these contradictory statements sufficiently impeached her trial testimony and that her testimony had to be corroborated by “direct evidence.” He argues that there is insufficient corroborative evidence and that his conviction must be reversed.

In support of his position, the defendant cites and relies on language found in the case of State v. Elsen, 68 Idaho 50, 187 P.2d 976 (1947), where this court stated,

“If, however, her character or reputation for truth and chastity, or either is impeached, or her testimony is contradictory or is inconsistent with the admitted facts of the case, or is inherently improbable or incredible, then there must be direct evidence corroborating her testimony.” (Emphasis added.) 68 Idaho at 54, 187 P.2d at 798.

This quotation from State v. Elsen is a part of a summarization of holdings of other opinions of this court. The use of the phrase “direct evidence” in the above summarization is not sustained by holdings of those cases, if the phrase is construed to mean “testimonial evidence” as opposed to “circumstantial evidence.”

In State v. Elsen, supra, the opinion later points out that where the prosecutrix was impeached,

“* * * this case requires evidence other than the testimony of the prosecutrix which in and of itself, and without the aid of her testimony, tends to support her testimony that the offense was committed, and which makes it appear probable that the accused was the perpetrator.” 68 Idaho at 55, 187 P.2d at 978.

Continuing, the opinion, at 68 Idaho 56, 187 P.2d 979, without any reference to the necessity of “direct evidence,” states, concerning the nature of the corroborative evidence :

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
519 P.2d 958, 95 Idaho 773, 1974 Ida. LEXIS 502, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-goodrick-idaho-1974.