Stotts v. State

279 S.W. 364, 170 Ark. 188, 1926 Ark. LEXIS 323
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedJanuary 25, 1926
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 279 S.W. 364 (Stotts v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stotts v. State, 279 S.W. 364, 170 Ark. 188, 1926 Ark. LEXIS 323 (Ark. 1926).

Opinion

Wood, J.

This is an appeal from a judgment sentencing George Stotts to the- penitentiary for fifteen years for the offense of assault with intent to kill one Grady Harlan.

Harlan testified in substance that he was deputy sheriff of Crittenden County; that on the 7th of March, 1925, he and two others went down on the gravel road to No. 96, where they had received information that Stotts was selling liquor. They went to Stotts’ house and sent a negro in to purchase some liquor. The negro called out that he wanted one, and Stotts brought it out. As he went to hand it to the negro, witness demanded hi's arrest, and he broke and ran. It was a dark night, but the moon was shining, and witness saw appellant handing the negro the liquor, and witness said to appellant, “Throw up your hands,” whereupon appellant ran back in the house, and the light in the house went out. Appellant’s wife was crying and taking on in there. Witness tried to tell her there wasn’t anybody there to hurt them, and did so tell her. The appellant at this point objected to any conversation between the witness and appellant’s wife.

It was shown that the conversation between the witness and appellant’s wife was in the presence of appellant. The court thereupon overruled the objection of appellant, and permitted the witness to continue his testimony, which was substantially as follows: The house where appellant and his wife were was about twelve or sixteen or eighteen feet. It was narrow and built straight. Witness explained to appellant’s wife when she went into hysterics that he was not going to hurt anybody, 'but that he was an officer of the law. He told appellant to come on and make bond; that it wasn’t a serious offense. Appellant’s wife heard witness state this. She told witness that she had been “trying to get the old man to quit that. ’ ’

Upon objection being made by the appellant’s counsel the court said to the jury, “I want to tell the jury now that there is some testimony here that this defendant’s wife made the remark that she had been trying to get her husband to quit that business, the supposition being that it was the liquor 'business. Under our law you oan not convict a man for one crime because he has committed another, and you are told to disregard that testimony only in so far as it may show that this defendant knew what these officers were and their business being there. You may consider it for that, but because he has sold liquor doesn’t shed any light as to whether or not he shot this man with intent to kill.”

Witness, continuing his testimony, said that he told appellant it was not such a serious crime he was charged with, and that he could come on to Marion and make bond. Appellant made no reply. Witness then told him, if he didn’t come out, witness would have to come in and get him, and witness started in after him, and just as witness got to the door, he snapped on his flashlight, and as soon as witness put it on, appellant shot witness twice. Witness pointed out where the shots took effect. Witness fired in the direction in which he saw appellant’s gun flash, and then stepped off of the porch and walked off. This occurred in Crittenden County. Witness got away as quickly as he could, and went to Marion to a hospital, where he was confined fifteen days. AYitness could hear what was being said by appellant and his wife, but appellant was not talking loud, and appellant’s wife was crying and taking on and making considerable noise.

Other testimony was introduced which substantially corroborated that of the witness Harlan. One of the witnesses stated that all he remembered hearing the appellant’s wife say was, “Go ’way—go on away and don’t come in.” He didn’t hear appellant’s wife make any statement that she knew Harlan was an officer. He heard Harlan tell appellant that he was a deputy sheriff, but appellant’s wife continued to scream, “Go away,” whereupon Harlan stated that if appellant did not come out he would go in, and Harlan started in, and the shooting began.

The appellant testified that he was horn in Crittenden 'County, and that with the exception of three years had lived there all of his life. He was hard of hearing. He lived at No. 96, close to Pinckney. On the night of the shooting he had retired. It occurred sometime after dark. He had never known Harlan, and had no feeling whatever against him. He was awakened by some one calling “Hello!” and a negro came to the door and wanted a half pint, which witness procured for him, and just as he got to the door some man stepped around the corner of the house and said, “Stick them up,” and witness immediately jumped back into the boat and put out the light, not knowing that it was an officer, and thinking that he was a “hi-jacker” as there had been considerable trouble on the river with hi-jackers, and witness crossed to his bed and got his shotgun and loaded it. He said that his wife was screaming and crying, and that he was badly frightened, and when the door opened and Harlan’s flashlight flashed on, he tried to shoot it out of his hand, and fired two shots only, whereupon the party seeking to enter his home began firing upon him very fast. After firing two shots, witness left, and after the party had left witness’ house witness got his car and he and his wife went to the store, where he was arrested. Witness told them at the store that somebody had tried to rob and kill them. The first time witness knew that he had shot an officer was when one of the party told him, after his arrest, that he had shot an officer. Witness was 45 years old, had a family, and had never been convicted of a criminal offense.

Appellant moved the court to direct a verdict in his favor, which request the court refused, and to which ruling the appellant excepted. The court gave the jury seventeen instructions, to each of which appellant duly objected, and excepted to the ruling of the court in giving same. Instruction No. 10 is as follows: “You are told, gentlemen of the jury, that an attempt to commit any felony upon either the person or property of any person shall be justification of a homicide. Section 2373 of Crawford & Moses ’ Digest of the Statutes reads as follows: ‘A manifest attempt and endeavor, in a violent, riotous or tumultuous manner, to enter the habitation of another, for the purpose of assaulting or offering personal Violence to any person dwelling or being therein, shall be a justification of homicide. ’ Therefore, you are instructed in this case that if you find from the proof in the case, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant, at the time the shot was fired which wounded the prosecuting witness, actually and honestly believed, without fault or carelessness on his part, that his habitation was about to be entered by somebody attempting to commit a felony, and, so acting and believing, he fired the shot to protect his property from a felon, it would be your duty to acquit him.”

1. Learned counsel for appellant in their oral argument and printed brief urge first that the court erred in permitting witness Grady Harlan to testify to what appellant’s wife 'said to him after appellant had run back in the house. The purport of the conversation was that, after appellant was ordered to throw up his hands, he ran back in the house, and his wife was in the house and began crying and taking on in there, whereupon Harlan tried to tell them that nobody was there to hurt them, and did tell them.

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Bluebook (online)
279 S.W. 364, 170 Ark. 188, 1926 Ark. LEXIS 323, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stotts-v-state-ark-1926.