Harnage v. State

• Decision Date: 13 June 1972
• Docket Number: 7 Div. 74
• Citation: 49 Ala.App. 563,274 So.2d 333
• Parties: Floyd E. HARNAGE, Jr. v. STATE.
• Court: Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals

Page 333

274 So.2d 333

49 Ala.App. 563

Floyd E. HARNAGE, Jr. v. STATE.

7 Div. 74.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Alabama.

June 13, 1972.

Rehearing Denied June 30, 1972.

James M. Campbell, Anniston, for appellant.

MacDonald Gallion, Atty. Gen., and Richard F. Calhoun, Asst. Atty. Gen., for the State.

HARRIS, Judge.

Appellant was convicted for the offense of murder in the first degree and his punishment fixed at life imprisonment in the penitentiary. He was charged with killing Linda Faye Croft by strangling her.

Linda Faye Croft was a student at the University and a student employee with the ROTC Unit where appellant worked. Linda Faye was last seen alive about 5:35 P.M. on Thursday, February 26, 1970, in company with appellant walking toward a parking lot behind Martin Hall on the campus of Jacksonville State University. One James Bartels, a Private in the U.S. Army and a student at Jacksonville State University, is the person who identified the appellant as the man Linda Faye was talking to at 5:30 P.M. on the sidewalk behind Martin Hall and then saw them walking toward the parking lot five minutes later. He made an in-court identification.

Linda Faye's body was found the following Sunday morning, March 1, down an embarkment on the Rocky Hollow Road, face down in a pile of trash and garbage, at a point about five and eight-tenths miles from the parking lot where she was last seen with appellant.

Linda Faye roomed with Miss Rita Morris in Curtis Hall on the campus. Miss Morris testified that on February 26, 1970 she was in their room studying for an examination she was to take the following day and that Linda Faye came to the room at fifteen minutes until five o'clock p.m. and changed clothes, as Linda was to meet a man at Martin Hall to learn where a surprise party was to be given for her fiance, Mike Whitlock, at which party he was to receive an award of some type. Rita could not remember the man's last name but testified it started with an 'H' and that he did work at the ROTC Building with Linda Faye. In this conversation with Miss Morris, Linda Faye told her that they (she and appellant) had talked that day about a letter appellant had shown her about the award that Mike was to receive. Linda Faye was dressed in navy blue pants, a navy blue long sleeveless vest, a long-sleeved white blouse, and had on a beige raincoat and blue shoes. She also wore a chain necklace, a wrist watch and a diamond ring. As she was about to leave the room at fifteen minutes after five o'clock p.m., she opened her raincoat and said,

'See what I have got on, just in case anybody needs to know, just remember what I have got on.'

She further told Rita she expected to be back at 6:30 P.M. as she had a date with Mike at seven o'clock p.m.; but, if she was not back by nine o'clock p.m., to call the police. Linda appeared nervous and according to Rita, she was teasing around with her and Linda said that if the man she was going to meet tried anything, she would give him a karate chop in the back because he had returned from Viet Nam not too long ago and that he had a bad back. In the early morning hours on Friday following Linda's disappearance on Thursday evening, Rita found a note in Linda's communications notebook which was offered in evidence as State's Exhibit No. 5 without objection. The note is as follows:

'Cathy,

I know this letter is silly but all day long I've had the weirdest feeling about this party situation. For some reason I don't feel that there is a planning of a party. Don't ask me why but I've just got this funny feeling.'

There was considerable testimony relating to an award vel non, but not one of the five other full-time employees nor two other student employees, nor even Colonel Wells, who was in charge of the ROTC office, had ever heard anything about an award of any kind, nature, or description for Mike Whitlock until the appellant mentioned to them at the Office on Friday, February 27, after Miss Croft's disappearance and very probably after her death, that the deceased had told him of the award, but said it was supposed to be a secret. Appellant said he told Linda that if it was to be a secret, she should keep it that way.

On the afternoon of February 26, just before closing time at 4:30 P.M., Miss Croft was talking to the whole group about her fiance going to ROTC summer camp at Fort Bragg and told them he planned to take airborne training after summer camp at Fort Benning, and according to testimony, nothing was mentioned about this award.

Mr. Dale Henry, a Civil Service employee of the Administrative portion of the ROTC Office in charge of handling all correspondence, routing it out, answering it and taking care of all student records and files, and Sergeant Michael McDowell, Mr. Henry's Assistant, both testified that they never received any mail from any authority relating to an award to be given Miss Croft's fiance, Cadet Whitlock.

The tendencies of the evidence clearly indicate that the question of an award originated in the mind of appellant.

Sergeant McDowell also testified that appellant had previously injured his back while he was getting ready to take their annual PT test and this was prior to February 26. The appellant also testified, on cross-examination, that he had injured his back sometime before February 26.

Linda Faye's fiance, Mike Whitlock came to Curtis Hall just before 7:00 P.M. to keep his date with Linda and was told that she was not there but was expected back shortly. He either telephoned or talked over the intercom at five to ten minute intervals trying to ascertain the whereabouts of Linda. She was reported missing and an intensive search was organized the next day by the Rescue Squad, Civil Defense Units, State and County Officers, Police Officers of the City of Jacksonville, Campus Police, fifty to sixty members of the ROTC Unit, several boys from the dormitories who volunteered to aid in the search, and two helicopters from Fort McClellan.

When her body was found, she did not have on any shoes nor was she wearing the beige coat, but they were both nearby. A silk scarf was tied through her mouth and knotted in the back.

Miss Croft's body was removed to a funeral home in Anniston, where an autopsy was made by the Toxicology Department for the State of Alabama, and the cause of death given as strangulation.

About 2:00 A.M. on Friday, February 27, two police officers went to appellant's home in search of information as to the whereabouts of Linda and observed pretty wide scratches on both of appellant's hands (top parts of each hand and wrist). Appellant told the officers his cat was in heat and had scratched him. Appellant was requested to go to Police Headquarters for further questioning and he and his wife followed the police car in one of his automobiles. Photographs of appellant's hands showing the scratch marks were taken at the Calhoun County Jail after arrest on Sunday afternoon, March 1, and were introduced in evidence at the trial.

On the morning of February 27, the appellant came to the ROTC Office in uniform and said he had been questioned by the police and he was the number one suspect. He made a request to be released from duty for the remainder of the day so he could go and see legal counsel. This request was granted, and he left shortly after making the statement concerning an award that Linda had mentioned to him.

Lieutenant Harry Sims of the Investigation Division of the State of Alabama testified that he went to the scene where Miss Croft's body was found and made certain measurements. He testified that her body was lying nine feet and seven inches from the edge of Rocky Hollow Road and ten feet and five inches from the creek. Her beige coat and the blue shoes she was wearing when last seen alive were some few feet from the body. Photographs of these items were made at the time the body was discovered. Photographs of the scene were taken before the body was removed. They were properly identified and introduced into evidence without objection. A photograph of the face and upper part of her body was made and was introduced in evidence over the objections of appellant assigning grounds that the photograph was gruesome and would inflame the minds of the jury and prejudice them, and has no probative value.

Lieutenant Roy Riddle, Alabama State Investigator, identified the photographs and he also testified that he, Sheriff Snead, and Captain Davis, another State Investigator, went to appellant's home after lunchtime on Friday, February 27, and tried to talk to appellant, but appellant refused to talk to them.

Sheriff Snead asked him to turn over to him the clothing he had worn the previous day and he refused to do so. At that time, they observed scratches over both hands. Appellant told them he was getting his cat out of a tree and the cat scratched him. Appellant testified at the trial that his cat was in heat and got out of the house and climbed a pine tree. He got the cat out of the tree and carried her into the house. The cat jumped upon the bed and when appellant tried to remove the cat from the bed, the cat scratched him.

After appellant's arrest on a warrant signed by Sheriff Snead, he was taken to the Calhoun County Jail and was given a sheet, a towel, and a cup and was locked in Cell No. 3 by himself. This was the only sheet given the appellant and on the following Thursday, this sheet was removed, folded and put into a paper bag and turned over to Sheriff Roy Snead. The beige coat and pair of shoes were delivered by the Sheriff to the Toxicologist at the funeral home in Anniston. The trousers and shirt worn by appellant on the day Linda was last seen were turned over to the Sheriff in the alley at the County Jail by appellant's counsel on Sunday, March 1, and were delivered to the Toxicologist at the funeral home on Sunday night. The chain necklace worn by deceased was turned over to the Sheriff on March 1 and he carried it...