Connaughton v. State, 28590

• Court: Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
• Citation: Connaughton v. State, 297 S.W.2d 185, 164 Tex.Crim. 158 (Tex. Crim. App. 1956)
• Decision Date: 21 November 1956
• Docket Number: No. 28590,28590
• Parties: Charles Edward CONNAUGHTON, Appellant, v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee.

Page 185

297 S.W.2d 185

164 Tex.Crim. 158

Charles Edward CONNAUGHTON, Appellant, v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee.

No. 28590.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas.

Nov. 21, 1956.

James J. Collins, Dallas, for appellant.

Henry Wade, Dist. Atty., Thomas B. Thorpe, Asst. Dist. Atty., Dallas, and Leon B. Douglas, State's Atty., Austin, for the State.

BELCHER, Commissioner.

The conviction is for robbery; the punishment, thirty years in the penitentiary.

D. L. Hicks, assistant manager of Cabell's Minit Market, testified that the appellant came into the market, exhibited a pistol, commanded that he give him the 'greenbacks' in the cash register which he did because he was in fear of serious bodily injury and his life; that the appellant then ran from the store and got into a car, and that he notified the police and gave them a description of the appellant and the car. He also testified that a check of the cash register showed that the appellant had taken $95.

Police Officer Boyd testified that he and Police Officer Kosan while on patrol heard the description broadcast on the radio; that about five minutes later while they were stopped at a signal light they saw appellant's car stopped there also; that when they attempted to arrest him, he sped away and they gave chase. He further testified that very shortly appellant lost control of his car which jumped an embankment and collided with a tree; that appellant jumped out of his car and began running; that after calling to him three or four times to stop without avail, he fired one shot at appellant which struck and stopped him. He testified that he then searched the appellant and found $96.

The testimony of Officer Kosan corroborated that of Officer Boyd, and in addition he testified that he searched the appellant's automobile and took a pistol from the floor-board on the right front side.

Appellant did not testify or offer any evidence in his behalf.

We find the evidence sufficient to sustain the jury's verdict.

Appellant's complaint of the argument to the jury by the state's attorney wherein he stated that the automobile which appellant was driving at the time of his arrest was stolen cannot be sustained as there appears in the record testimony without objection that it was stolen.

Appellant insists that the trial court erred in overruling his motion for a new trial.

It was alleged in the motion that the appellant had prior to the trial accepted an offer made by the district attorney of fifteen years in this case and three other cases, all sentences to run concurrently, and that his...