Maestas v. People
| Decision Date | 02 May 1932 |
| Docket Number | 13019. |
| Citation | 91 Colo. 36,11 P.2d 227 |
| Parties | MAESTAS v. PEOPLE. |
| Court | Colorado Supreme Court |
Error to District Court, Costilla County; John I. Palmer, Judge.
Joe Maestas was convicted of murder in the first degree, and he brings error.
Affirmed.
James P. Veerkamp, of Monte Vista, for plaintiff in error.
Clarence L. Ireland, Atty. Gen., and Wallace S. Porth, Asst. Atty Gen., for the People.
Joe Maestas was found guilty of murder of the first degree and his punishment fixed at death. He prosecutes this writ assigning as error the insufficiency of the evidence to sustain the verdict.
The facts are substantially as follows: Ben Addis, a registered pharmacist, was, on September 9, 1931, engaged as a salesman and he, together with his sister, Mrs. Millie Freeman, were traveling in an automobile to the San Luis Valley for the purpose of soliciting orders from merchants there. They arrived at Fort Garland, Costilla county, Colo., at about 10 o'clock on the evening of September 9, 1931, to find that the merchant there, upon whom they desired to call, had closed his place of business; they decided to spend the night there, sleeping in their car, and transact their business in the morning. They parked their car on vacant property near the roadside, closed their windows, locked their car doors and, after they had been asleep for about two hours, Mrs. Freeman was awakened by defendant and one Fernandez attempting to open the car door on Mrs. Freeman's side. Mrs. Freeman awakened her brother, who asked defendant and Fernandez what they wanted, whereupon Fernandez disappeared, and defendant went to Addis' side of the car and, with curses, demanded that he open the window. Addis, in turn, demanded who defendant was, and was answered 'that didn't make any difference who I am,' and defendant again demanded that the window be opened, and asked for some identification card, which Addis gave him through the window, opened wide enough to pass out a card, but not sufficiently wide to allow defendant to push his hand through, as he attempted to do. After defendant had the identification card which Addis gave him, he complained that he could not read it in the darkness, and Addis suggested that if defendant would go to the front of the car, he (Addis) would turn on the lights. Defendant did as was suggested and Addis turned on the lights, and while defendant was apparently reading the card, Addis started the engine and attempted to back the car towards Fort Garland. Defendant got on the bumper, and eventually on the running board, and from there broke the window glass on Addis' side of the car with his fist. In the meanwhile, the car was brought to a stop, and while Addis was attempting to put defendant off the running board, Mrs. Freeman got out of the car and ran towards Fort Garland for assistance, whereupon defendant ran after her, and when about to grab her, she eluded him and ran back to her brother, who was then standing near the rear of the car. Defendant then disappeared for a short time, leaving Addis and his sister standing near the car, when he suddenly reappeared, and limmediately fired several shots from an automatic pistol at Addis, inflicting wounds, from the effects of which Addis died the next day in a hospital at Alamosa.
While Addis was in the hospital, his dying declaration was taken and was offered and admitted in evidence. Defendant was apprehended at La Veta the next day; the automatic pistol was found concealed on him; he...
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