Johnson v. State

• Decision Date: 01 December 1909
• Citation: 123 S.W. 143
• Parties: JOHNSON v. STATE.
• Court: Texas Court of Criminal Appeals

123 S.W. 143

JOHNSON v. STATE.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas.

December 1, 1909.

Appeal from District Court, Haskell County; Cullen C. Higgins, Judge.

E. W. Johnson appeals from a conviction. Reversed, and prosecution ordered dismissed.

Parker & Parker, for appellant. F. J. McCord, Asst. Atty. Gen., for the State.

BROOKS, J.

Appellant was convicted of swindling, and his punishment assessed at five years' confinement in the penitentiary.

The charging part of the indictment is as follows: "* * * Did then and there, with willful design to receive benefit of him, the said E. W. Johnson, and to cause injury to one J. M. Ferrell, request and solicit the said J. M. Ferrell to sign as drawer a certain promissory note in words and figures following, to wit: `$250.00. Haskell, Texas, Aug. 31, 1907. Thirty days after date, for value received, I, we, or either of us promise to pay to the order of the Haskell National Bank Two Hundred Fifty & No/100 Dollars, with exchange, at their banking house in Haskell, Texas, with 10 per cent. interest per annum from maturity until paid. And in the event default is made in the payment of this note at maturity, and it is placed in the hands of an attorney for collection, or suit is brought on the same, then an additional amount of 10 per cent. on the principal and interest of this note shall be added to the same as collection fees. The makers and indorsers, severally, waive presentment for payment, protest, and notice of protest, and the bringing of suit at the first term of court, upon nonpayment of this note after maturity, and also consent that time of payment may be extended without notice thereof, whether the same is done with or without consideration. E. W. Johnson. ___________. ______ _____. Due _____.' And that J. M. Ferrell, so as above requested and solicited, did then and there sign his name as drawer on said note, and as an inducement for him, the said J. M. Ferrell, to sign his name as aforesaid on the note, he, the said E. W. Johnson, did then and there falsely and deceitfully pretend and fraudulently represent to him, the said J. M. Ferrell, that his, the said E. W. Johnson's, wife was sick at Stamford, and that he had to get away from there, and that he had decided to move to Haskell, and that he had come to Haskell to rent a place, but that, since coming to Haskell, he had decided to buy a place, instead of renting one, as rents were too high, and that he had found a house in East Haskell which he considered a bargain; that said house was a new fourroom house, and four lots went with it, the purchase price of which was one thousand dollars, that he had seven hundred and fifty dollars to pay on said place, and lacked two hundred and fifty dollars more, which he wanted to borrow; that if he, the said J. M. Ferrell, would assist him in borrowing the said two hundred and fifty dollars by going on his note, he would close out the deal and purchase said house and lot at once, as he was very anxious to get his wife away from Stamford and move to Haskell the following week; that he would have no trouble in paying the two hundred and fifty dollars, as he had just received that day from the post office in Haskell a letter from his partner at Stamford informing him, the said E. W. Johnson, that his partner had just sold a big tract of land in Jones county, which he and his partner owned jointly, of which he was to get one-half of the proceeds of said sale of said land, and that in a few days, as soon as the title could be examined, he would have the money he needed, and would be in no way tight for money, and could pay off and discharge said note, but that his trade here in Haskell for the house and lot would not wait, as he, the said E. W. Johnson, would have to make the trade now, or not at all; that the man...