Davis v. State

• Citation: 222 So.2d 719,284 Ala. 135
• Decision Date: 08 May 1969
• Docket Number: 3 Div. 364
• Parties: Willie Lee DAVIS v. STATE.
• Court: Supreme Court of Alabama

Page 719

222 So.2d 719

284 Ala. 135

Willie Lee DAVIS v. STATE.

3 Div. 364.

Supreme Court of Alabama.

May 8, 1969.

L. H. Walden, Montgomery, for appellant.

MacDonald Gallion, Atty. Gen., and David W. Clark, Asst. Atty. Gen., for the State.

HARWOOD, Justice.

This appellant, Willie Lee Davis, and James Leroy Embrey, were jointly indicted for the crime of robbery. A severance was granted, and upon Embrey's jury trial, he was adjudged guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment. This judgment has been affirmed. See Embrey v. State, 283 Ala. 110, 214 So.2d 567.

This appellant's trial resulted in a verdict and judgment of guilty, punishment being fixed at confinement in the penitentiary for thirty years.

Motion for a new trial being overruled, an appeal was perfected to this court.

The evidence presented by the state tends to show that around 2 A.M., on the morning of 13 February 1967, Joseph W. O'Daniels, and C. W. Lansdon, ticket agents on duty at the Union Station in Montgomery, were held up and robbed at pistol point, $239.25 being thus obtained by the robber.

James Leroy Embrey was later taken into custody by the police, and during his trial was unequivocally identified by O'Daniel and Lansdon as the man who had robbed them. This appellant, Willie Lee Davis, was not present at the robbery.

The evidence further shows that Davis and his friend Embrey, a business associate in a shoeshine parlor in Detroit, Michigan, had come to Montgomery on a visit to Davis' mother.

Kenneth Murrell, a taxi driver, had his cab parked in the vicinity of the Union Station at the time of the robbery. He saw a muddy, black and white 1956 Chevrolet automobile parked between two trucks near the station. The Chevrolet was facing an alley.

Murrell noticed a man walking toward the Chevrolet, and at the same time a second man came running out of the Union Station to the Chevrolet. Both men entered the car, and as the second man opened the door on the right side, he turned and fired a shot toward Murrell's cab. The Chevrolet moved off down the alley, and Murrell pursued it in his cab. During the chase down various streets someone in the Chevrolet fired another shot at the cab which struck a front fender of the cab. Eventually the Chevrolet outdistanced Murrell's cab and he gave up the chase.

B. E. Reynolds, a police officer of the City of Montgomery, began his investigation of the robbery shortly after a call from O'Daniels reporting the same. Going to the Original Queen Cab stand, he found that a cab had been dispatched to 792 Ludie Street at 2:15 A.M. He went to this address around 3:30 A.M., and found a black and white Chevrolet parked in the rear. The motor was still warm. Being admitted to the house by appellant's parents, he found appellant in bed asleep. With the permission of all parties, the Chevrolet was driven to police headquarters, where Murrell identified the Chevrolet as being the one he had chased. Appellant had accompanied officer Reynolds to the police station.

A search warrant being obtained, the Chevrolet was searched. An empty 6.35 millimeter shell, as well as an unfired shell of the same calibre, was found in the Chevrolet.

Police officers F. L. McCracken and R. S. Kelley found James Leroy Embrey riding as a passenger in Original Queen Cab No. 7 around 2:30 A.M. Embrey voluntarily agreed to accompany them to the Union Station.

Other evidence shows that in a search of Cab No. 7, a pistol was found under the front seat.

This pistol, a .25 calibre Galesi, was shown by other evidence to have been purchased by the appellant from Max's Pawn Shop in Montgomery on 6 February 1967.

An empty shell found at the site of the shooting at the Union Station was shown by expert testimony to have been fired from this pistol. The shells found in the search of the Chevrolet were similar to the empty shell found at the Union Station.

For the defense, Ida Mae Davis, mother of the appellant, testified she was the owner of the Chevrolet automobile in question. The appellant, and James Leroy Embrey, and Leamon Caldwell were visiting in her home around the time of the robbery. On the night of the robbery, she had loaned her automobile to the appellant. He had returned home around 12:30 A.M., and had gone to bed, and was asleep at the time of the arrival of the officers.

The appellant in his own behalf testified that on the night of 13 February 1967, he and Embrey and their respective dates had gone to a night club. Leaving the night club, they bought a box of fried chicken and went to the home of one of the girls and ate the...