People v. Niles, 13493.

• Decision Date: 21 December 1920
• Docket Number: No. 13493.,13493.
• Citation: 129 N.E. 97,295 Ill. 525
• Parties: PEOPLE v. NILES.
• Court: Illinois Supreme Court

295 Ill. 525

129 N.E. 97

PEOPLE

v.NILES.

No. 13493.

Supreme Court of Illinois.

Dec. 21, 1920.

Error to City Court of Mattoon; John McNutt, Judge.

Odd Niles was convicted of perjury, and he brings error.

Reversed and remanded.Bryan H. Tivnen, of Mattoon (Thomas R. Figenbaum and Harry I. Hannah, both of Mattoon, of counsel), for plaintiff in error.

Edward J. Brundage, Atty. Gen., Emery Andrews, of Mattoon, State's Atty., and Floyd E. Britton, of Springfield, for the People.

FARMER, J.

Plaintiff in error, Odd Niles, was indicted jointly with Sylvester Jackson and Frank Haskell in the city court of Mattoon, Ill., at the March term, 1919. The first two counts of the indictment charged them with the larceny, on September 24, 1918, of a Ford automobile of the value of $300, the property of William Paxton. The third count of the indictment charged them with receiving the automobile for their own gain, to prevent the owner from again possessing his property, knowing it to have been stolen. Haskell and Jackson entered their pleas of guilty at the same term the indictment was returned, and the former was sentenced to the penitentiary and the latter to the reform school. Niles pleaded not guilty, was tried and acquitted. At the September term of the city court, 1919, Niles was indicted for having committed perjury in his testimony while testifying as a witness in his own behalf during his trial under the indictment charging him, Haskell, and Jackson with larceny and receiving stolen property. The first count of the indictment charges that on the trial of Niles under said indictment it became and was a material question whether Niles met or was with Haskell in the city of East St. Louis at any time between September 24, 1918, and the day of the trial, and that Niles on said trial testified on substance and to the effect that he never got Haskell to go with him from Mattoon to East St. Louis for the purpose of changing the number on the automobile motor described in the indictment, and that he never saw Haskell in East St. Louis from September 24, 1918, down to the day of his trial. The indictment alleges that testimony was false, and that in giving it Niles committed perjury. The second count alleges that on the trial of Niles it became and was a material question whether he ever met or was with Haskell on or about September 27, 1918, in East St. Louis with the automobile Niles was charged with stealing and receiving, knowing it to have been stolen, with intent to deprive the owner of his property, or met Haskell in East St. Louis for the purpose of changing the motor number on said automobile; that Niles testified he did not meet or was not with Haskell in East St. Louis at the time or for the purposes mentioned, which was false, and known to be false by Niles, whereby he committed perjury. The third count alleges that on the trial of Niles it became and was a material question whether on the 24th of September, 1918, for his own gain and to prevent the owner from again possessing his property, he received and aided in concealing the automobile of Paxton, then lately before stolen, and whether at the time when he received the automobile he knew the same to have been stolen; that Niles testified he did not so receive said automobile, which was false and untrue, whereby he committed perjury. Niles entered a plea of not guilty to the indictment, was tried, convicted, and sentenced to the penitentiary. He has sued out this writ of error to review the judgment.

A brief statement of some of the testimony will help to a better understanding of the points raised on this record. Haskell and Jackson, with whom we became to some extent acquainted in People v. Miller, 292 Ill. 318, 127 N. E. 58, became witnesses for the prosecution in the trial of Niles on the former indictment and also on the trial of this case. They testified, in substance, that September 24, 1918, Niles was living in Mattoon, where they also resided, and on that day he asked them to steal a Ford car for him, and promised to pay them $100 for it; that about 8:30 o'clock that night they stole the Paxton car from where it was parked in a street in Mattoon, drove it away, tried to change the number on the motor, but did not succeed very well, and then drove it to Niles' house in Mattoon, and, finding him absent, left the car at his house. They did not see him against for three or four days, when he came back to Mattoon from East St. Louis and wanted one of them to go there with him and change the motor number, and said he had almost got into trouble about the car. Both of them testified Haskell went with Niles to East St. Louis, and Haskell testified that on their arrival there they went to the garage of Baker & Howard, got the car, drove into the country, changed the motor number, and drove the car back to the garage. About October 1 Niles was again in Mattoon, and told Jackson he wanted a bill of sale for the car; that the police in East St. Louis were holding the car. Jackson gave him a bill of sale, signing it A. J. Smith, and executed it before Justice of the Peace Satterly, in Mattoon.

Niles testified he had been engaged in the automobile business in Mattoon, and while so engaged became acquainted with Haskell and Jackson, and had some business transactions with them. He offered to buy a chassis from them, and they offered to take $150 for it, and he finally agreed to take it if they would put a body or top on it. The deal was made with Jackson. Niles told him he wanted to drive it to East St. Louis, starting early next morning, and Jackson promised to deliver it by 7 o'clock next morning at Niles' house. The car was delivered that night. Niles was not at the house when it was delivered, but returned to the house about 8:30 o'clock, and found the car there. He drove it down town to see Haskell and Jackson and pay them for it, but, not finding them, he drove around a while to see if the car was in good condition, and decided to drive to his brother-in-law's, 11 or 12 miles in the country, stay there all night, and next morning drive to East St. Louis. On arriving at East St. Louis he put the car in the garage of Baker & Howard, where he left it that night and part of the day. He was subsequently arrested by an East St. Louis detective and taken to the police station. At that time he had sold the car. He sold it October 2 to Ike Cohen. Before selling it Cohen wanted some information about Niles, and they went together to a saloon, and Niles told Cohen he could call up the Central Trust & Savings Bank of Mattoon. The saloon keeper called up the bank, and, after talking with some one, Cohen said he would take the car. Wyant was the saloon keeper, and he paid Niles $330 for the car, and Niles made him a bill of sale for it. The next day after the sale Niles returnedto Mattoon and paid Haskell $150 in currency for the car. The night of October 3 he bought a car from one Gibler, and on the morning of the 5th drove it to East St. Louis. It was about the 9th of October that Niles was taken to the police station, and the next morning he returned to Mattoon and saw Jackson, and told him he wanted a bill of sale for the automobile, which was required by the ‘fellows' in East St. Louis. Jackson executed the bill of sale in Satterly's office. Niles returned to East St. Louis with the bill of sale, gave it to police officer Aldrich,...