State v. Patterson

73 Mo. 695
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedApril 15, 1881
StatusPublished
Cited by83 cases

This text of 73 Mo. 695 (State v. Patterson) 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. Patterson, 73 Mo. 695 (Mo. 1881).

Opinion

[699]*699I.

Sherwood, C. J.

The sufficiency of the indictment will first be examined.

It is no ground of objection that the names of the material witnesses for the State were not indorsed thereon. The only consequence growing out of such failure is, that no continuance on account of the absence of such witnesses will be granted the State, save upon the affidavit of the prosecuting attorney. R. S. 1879, § 1802; State v. Nugent, 71 Mo. 136. Besides, the names of the principal witnesses were indorsed on the indictment prior to the motion to quash.

Nor is the indictment obnoxious to objection because of any supposed vagueness or other uncertainty; because charging two assaults in one count, or because it charges divers mortal wmunds were inflicted, whereof the deceased died. It was proper to charge two assaults in the same count, if this was in accordance with the facts. Eor sometimes the murderous result is only attained after repeated assaults, and is' as much attributable to one assault as to another. 3 Chitty Crim. Law, 764, 777; Com. v. Stafford, 12 Cush. 619; People v. Davis, 56 N. Y. 100.

And it was equally competent to charge that death occurred as the result of several mortal wounds, without specifying which one caused death, as this would not have been susceptible of proof, and the charge need not be more definite than the evidence requisite to support it. In the State v. Draper, 65 Mo. 335, the concluding words of the charge were: “In and upon the breast of him, the said Gilbert, and in and upon the belly of him, the said Gilbert, four mortal wounds, etc., of which said mortal wouuds the said Gilbert did then and there instantly dieand held sufficient. Under our statute relating to practice in criminal cases, “ No indictment shall be deemed invalid, nor judgment thereon arrested, for want of any averment [700]*700not necessary to be proved.” 2 Wag. Stat., pp. 1090, 1091, § 27; State v. Edmundson, 64 Mo. 398.

The concluding words of the charge here are: “ Of which said ¿aortal wounds, and the mortal wounds, bruises and contusions inflicted as aforesaid, the said James G-. Clark then and there died,” and we hold them suflicient-

II.

No error occurred in overruling the motion to remand the cause to Morgan county. It is true that a change of venue had been taken to the circuit court of that county, but subsequently to that time the indictment on which the-defendant was tried was found, and after its finding and before the motion aforesaid was filed, a nolle prosequi was-entered in the Morgan circuit court. - It would, therefore, in the circumstances detailed, have been as palpably erroneous to have granted the motion, and by granting it sent the cause to the circuit court of Morgan county, as it would have been to have sent the cause to any other circuit court whatsoever; because the jurisdiction of the Morgan circuit court over the case ceased at once when the action we have stated was taken. And it was perfectly competent for the grand jury of Henry county to find the second bill of indictment, notwithstanding a change of venue had been awarded to Morgan county. The circuit court of that county was indeed possessed of the cause, but this did not prevent the grand jury of Henry county from finding another bill, any more than they would have been thus prevented, had no change of venue been taken. The jurisdiction over the cause is one thing ; the power and duty to find a new bill of indictmentupon whose charges that clause shall be tried, is another and totally distinct and different thing. State v. Tisdale, 2 Dev. & Bat. 159. Our statute expressly recognizes the right of a grand jury to find one indictment pending another, by providing that the indictment first found shall be quashed. And under that statute we have ruled that until such quashing occurs, no trial can [701]*701take place on the second indictment. State v. Smith, 71 Mo. 45.

At common law the rule was different. A second indictment might be found and the accused be put to trial on it, the first indictment being undetermined. Com. v. Drew, 3 Cush. 279, and cases cited; Dutton v. State, 5 Ind. 533, and cases cited; 1 Whart. Crim. Law, §§ 521, 547. It is unnecessary to say what would be our ruling had not the nolle prosequi been entered in the Morgan circuit court an- ■ terior to the trial.

In Texas, a trial upon a second indictment found against the defendant alone, has been held valid, where prior to that time a change of venue was had, the defendAnt being jointly indicted with another for the same offense and .the change of venue taken at the instance of the co-defendant and over the objections of the party tried, and that indictment still pending. But that ruling was grounded in part upon the peculiar circumstances surrounding the case as presented by the record. Cock v. State, 8 Tex. App. 659. That case has obviously no relevancy here, and we need neither approve nor disapprove it.

Nor can it be said that the ruling of the lower court asserts the doctrine that a party defendant may be deprived of the right of a change of venue at the “ mere caprice of the prosecuting attorney.” If the original cause for the change of venue still existed, it was still as competent for the defendant to insist upon a change of venue as it was at first. But it was certainly not competent for him, after the Morgan circuit court had lost all jurisdiction, to reinvest that court with jurisdiction by a motion to that effect. This would be violative of statutory provisions respecting a change of venue, and place that change at the mere caprice of the party indicted. But in this case there was no cause for the change, and none is alleged. The original cause, the “prejudice of the judge” of the Henry circuit court, had ceased, and that judge was no longer judge of that cojirt. This, we believe, was conceded to be the Case [702]*702at the hearing, and if not so conceded, we could take judicial notice of who was the former and who was the present judge of that court, it being a court of general jurisdiction. 1 Greenleaf Ev., § 6. Had the original cause for the change of venue still existed; had the judge against whom the former application was filed still remained on the bench, the claim that defendant was entitled to have the cause removed from Henry county would possess more force and be entitled to greater consideration, but even then defendant could with no plausibility insist that the cause should be awarded to the Morgan circuit court simply because the cause had once been transferred there.

III.

The next point for consideration is, whether the confessions of defendant were properly admitted. He was arrested at Sedalia on the 4th day of December, 1868, by the sheriff of Pettis county, to whom he was pointed out by one of a party of citizens who started in pursuit of the murderer of a man named Clark, found dead on the prairie near Le.esville, in Henry county. Defendant had taken a wagon to a blacksmith shop, and returning to the livery stable with the team, he was arrested. Upon his arrest he made inquiry of the sheriff' for what he was arrested, and on being told that it was for murder committed near Lees-ville, he said: “I have not been out with a wagon, but my partner has.” Asked where he had been, he could give no account only that he was “out in the country around;” and made a similar reply in response to a question where he had been on a certain night.

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Bluebook (online)
73 Mo. 695, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-patterson-mo-1881.