Green v. State, 47968

• Decision Date: 13 February 1974
• Docket Number: No. 47968,47968
• Citation: 505 S.W.2d 292
• Court: Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
• Parties: Joseph Allen GREEN, Appellant. v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee.

Page 292

505 S.W.2d 292

Joseph Allen GREEN, Appellant. v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee.

No. 47968.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas.

Feb. 13, 1974.

Robert J. Pandak, Houston, for appellant.

Carol S. Vance, Dist. Atty., James C. Brough and Donald Lambright, Asst. Dist. Atty., Houston, Jim D. Vollers, State's Atty. and Buddy Stevens, Asst. State's Atty., Austin, for the State.

OPINION

DOUGLAS, Judge.

This is an appeal from a conviction for the offense of rape; the punishment was assessed as twenty-five years.

Appellant contends that the evidence is insufficient to show his guilt as a principal.

The record reflects that around 1:30 or 2:00 a.m. on April 20, 1969, the prosecutrix and her sixteen-year-old girlfriend, who was spending the night with her, went riding with Harold. Upon stopping for a train at a railroad crossing, a car pulled up behind them. Several black men got out of this car, walked up to Harold's car, and at least two of them pointed guns at them. The men used vulgar language and demanded that the occupants of Harold's car open the doors or they would blow their heads off. The three complied, and two of the black men got in. These two men took the prosecutrix' purse and Harold's wallet and made the three get on the back floorboard where the two men beat them over their heads with guns.

As these two men then drove Harold's car away, they were followed by a car and a truck which contained several men. The two men stated that they were going to get back at the while people and were going to rape the girls and kill the three of them. The two men mentioned the names of the people in the truck and car, but neither of the victims could remember the names.

Within ten to fifteen minutes, the car was stopped in a wooded area. The prosecutrix and Harold were dragged from the car, and the other girl was made to get on the back seat. Harold was forced to lie on the ground with someone's knee in his back and a gun pointed to his head. He was warned that if he tried anything he would be killed. During this time, Harold could hear someone jacking up his car and trying to take a wheel off. He could also hear someone trying to remove a tape deck from his car.

While the girlfriend was being raped, another man took her watch. The prosecutrix was thrown on a blanket on the ground near the pickup. Her clothes were then torn off and a gun was held to her head. She was then raped by three different men. While the third man was assaulting her, two game wardens arrived. At that time she heard someone call the third attacker 'Harold.' As 'Harold' (not to be confused with her companion Harold) got off of her, she raised up and the attackers had run into the woods. At that time, none of the attackers were in or around the cars.

The game wardens found the two girls in hysterics.

The officers also found that Harold's car had been jacked up and one wheel partially removed. A loaded .22 rifle was found between the truck and the other car.

At approximately 8:00 a.m., some five hours after the assaults, a deputy sheriff observed appellant and Harold Rogers standing beside a car which was parked on the side of the road some three miles from the scene of the rapes. Upon being confronted by the officer, appellant told him that he and Rogers had been fishing all night at a nearby reservoir, that he could not find his automobile, and that he and Rogers were trying to get a ride back home. Both appellant and Rogers were described as being muddy from the waist down, and neither of them had any fishing gear. Lepoleon Brown, David Gibson and Tommy Franklin were also arrested in the same general area. Andrew Frank Gibson was later arrested at his home.

Several tapes which were taken from Harold's car at the time of the rapes were found in the right back seat and floorboard of appellant's car.

Tommy Franklin testified that on the night in question he had been to a party with appellant. Thereafter, the two, along with Lepoleon Brown, David Gibson and Andrew Frank Gibson, assaulted the people in Harold's car at the railroad crossing. He further testified that prior to the time he raped the girl in the car that he and appellant had tried to get a tape deck out of Harold's car. Although Franklin testified that he never saw appellant rape anyone, he stated that appellant could have raped the prosecutrix and he could not have seen it.

Although neither the two girls nor Harold could identify appellant as being at the scene of the rapes, appellant testified that he was there. He also testified that on the evening in question he went to a dance and drank heavily. He related that after he took his date home he went to the Civics Club and he gave his car keys to Harold...