People v. Roche

• Decision Date: 19 March 1945
• Docket Number: No. 28339.,28339.
• Citation: 59 N.E.2d 866,389 Ill. 361
• Parties: PEOPLE v. ROCHE et al.
• Court: Illinois Supreme Court

389 Ill. 361

59 N.E.2d 866

PEOPLE

v.ROCHE et al.

No. 28339.

Supreme Court of Illinois.

Jan. 17, 1945.

Rehearing Denied March 19, 1945.

Error to Criminal Court, Cook County; Harold G. Ward, Judge.

William J. Roche and others were convicted of robbery, and they bring error.

Affirmed.

Wm. Scott Stewart, of Chicago, for plaintiffs in error.

George F. Barrett, Atty. Gen., and Thomas J. Courtney, State's Atty., of Chicago (Edward E. Wilson, John T. Gallagher, Melvin S. Rembe, and Joseph A. Pope, all of Chicago, of counsel), for the People.

THOMPSON, Justice.

William J. Roche, otherwise called William Murphy, Raymond Fishell, otherwise called Raymond Peter Fishell, otherwise called Robert Ross, otherwise called Edward Doyle, Wincel Urban, otherwise called John Roland, and one William C. Walker, hereinafter referred to as defendants, were indicted in the criminal court of Cook county for robbery. All defendants entered pleas of not guilty, and on motion of the State's Attorney a separate trial was granted to the defendant William C. Walker, who was released upon his own recognizance. The three remaining defendants were tried before a jury, and, after motion for a directed verdict at the close of all the evidence as to each defendant, which was overruled, the jury returned verdicts finding them all guilty. Defendant William J. Roche was found guilty of robbery and the court fixed his punishment at imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term of not less than one year nor more than three years. Defendant Raymond Fishell was found guilty of robbery and of having been theretofore convicted of a felony, and the court fixed his punishment at imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term of twenty years. Defendant Wincel Urban was found guilty of robbery, and the court fixed the duration of his imprisonment in the penitentiary at not less than eight years nor more than fifteen years as provided by law. A nolle prosequi as to William C. Walker, who testified in the trial of this cause and who had been granted a separate trial, was entered on motion of the State's Attorney. Defendants bring the cause here contending the State's Attorney asked improper questions of a certain witness in cross-examination, that improper instructions were given to the jury, and that the judgments entered are void because the amendment to the Parole Act rendered that act unconstitutional.

The evidence reveals the following facts pertaining to this robbery: The Olson Transportation Company is located at 2222 South Western avenue, in the city of Chicago, and one Margaret Applegate was employed there as cashier, taking in the cash as turned in by incoming drivers employed by the company. On March 6, 1944, around 9:45 o'clock in the morning, while she was on duty, a man came in, stood along side of her, and said: ‘This is a stickup, don't say anything or you will get hurt.’ His right hand was in his pocket and with his left he closed the cashbox drawer which contained the money she had placed there that had been brought in by drivers, picked it up, put it under his arm and walked away. He had on a tan camel-hair overcoat and wore a crushed fedora hat. As he walked away, the cashier turned in her chair and observed another man standing by the gate holding it open for the man to go through with the cashbox. After both of these men left, the cashier saw the conveyance they used. It was a black Ford sedan standing at the curb, and the men entered this car and drove east on Twenty-second place. Twenty-second place being about twenty feet south of the entrance to the building.

Mrs. Applegate was called as a witness for the People and positively identified defendants Fishell and Roche as being the parties who were in the Olson Transportation Company building and who walked out with the money on the day in question. She also testified that later, on the morning of the robbery, she was called to the Brighton Park police station and saw defendant Fishell, who was in custody and whom she identified at that time. She also saw the Ford car which she stated resembled the car used by the men in leaving the scene of the robbery. She testified that approximately $650 was taken, which was the property of the Olson Transportation Company.

Thaddeus Michalek, a driver for the Olson Transportation Company, testified he was in the building at the time of the robbery and saw a man come up to Mrs. Applegate, pick up the cashbox, put it under his arm and walk away; that the man who picked up the cashbox was defendant Fishell and that another man, standing at the door coming into the building, opened it for him and they both went out; that he ran after the men and saw them get in a black Ford car and leave; that about a half-hour or an hour later he went to Brighton Park police station and recognized Fishell, who was in custody, as the man he had seen pick up the cashbox.

Other employees of the transportation company, who were present at the time of the robbery, identified Fishell and testified they observed him and his confederate escape with the cashbox in the Ford automobile in which they were riding.

Edward Bartel, a salesman, testified that on March 6, 1944, about 9:40 or 9:45 A. M., he was on his way out of Chicago, traveling north on Western avenue; that as he approached the Olson Transportation Company building, he saw two men run out, (one wearing a light tan overcoat), and jump in a car, and saw a few people following them; that as his automobile reached a point about even with their car in the intersection of Twenty-second place and Western avenue, their car swung to the left and almost ran into the side of his automobile; that he was able to see the driver of the car, whom he later identified at the police station as Wincel Urban; that he followed the black Ford automobile down Twenty-second place to Oakley boulevard; that, following them, he observed the license number of the car which was Illinois 335914; that, shortly thereafter, the car slowed down and a man jumped out and got into a two-toned Buick with a Missouri license on it; that this man had on a tan coat; that the Buick pulled out from the curb immediately after he entered and went down Oakley boulevard to Twenty-fifth street; that he followed and took the license number of the Buick car which was 178292; that the Buick car was a five-passenger coupe with a two-toned color gray with a maroon body; that he immediately called the police, giving them that license number, and went back to the Olson Transportation Company and inquired if they had a robbery there; that he went over to the Brighton Park police station around 11:30 A. M. and saw the two cars that he had previously followed; that they bore the same license numbers he had noted earlier that morning and that he recognized two prisoners then in custody as being the two men, Urban and Fishell, he had seen earlier that morning. He further testified there were three men in the car at the Olson Transportation Company, that is, after the two men ran and got in just before the car pulled away.

Police officers testified as to complaints coming into the police department concerning the two cars in question being used in the robbery; that teletype notice from the department was immediately given with the numbers of the cars; that members of the department, while cruising around in the neighborhood of Western avenue, saw a Buick sedan, a two-toned color, bearing license number 178292, parked near a saloon; that they entered the saloon and saw two men at the bar drinking; that they made inquiries of them and noticed there were some automobile keys lying in front of them. After questioning these men, who said they came there on the streetcar, they took them in custody and went out to the two-toned Buick and found that one set of the keys fit the car. They also found on each of these parties a key for a room at the Linwood Hotel. One of the keys had the number 105 and the other 106. They arrested the defendants, who proved to be Fishell and Urban. They also found the black Ford car bearing license number 335914 and that the other set of keys, which were in front of Urban at the bar, fit the ignition of this car. They searchd this car and found a paper bag under the seat with two fully loaded revolvers. The officers then went immediately to the Linwood Hotel and searched rooms 105 and 106. They found a woman in one of the rooms who said her name was Walker and she was taken into custody. They talked to the hotel clerk and showed him the keys and he looked up the record. Room 105 was issued to a man by the name of Walker and room 106 to a man by the name of Moore. It was shown by the clerk of the hotel that the men who registered there, taking these rooms under assumed names, were defendants Fishell and Roche.

William C. Walker, who was indicted along with the other defendants but who was given a separate trial, testified for the People and gave complete details as to the arrangements for robbing the transportation company and the method and manner in which it was to be carried out, implicating and identifying the three defendants. He did not participate in the actual carrying out of the crime but had tipped the defendants off to the location where they might make some money on robbery. His first appearance, in his connection with the robbery, was when he called at the Linwood Hotel the next morning to collect, as he said ‘his money as a tipster.’ When he went to room 105 he found the officers there who arrested him. He was immediately taken to the detective bureau, questioned as to his participation, wherein he made and signed a statement, giving full details. In fact, the testimony of Walker was so largely corroborated that the defendants do not even attack his evidence. Without further going into detail, it is safe to say the evidence was so overwhelmingly against defendants that there could be no question as to their guilt.

The defendants,...