Ship v. State

• Decision Date: 18 May 1898
• Citation: Ship v. State, 45 S.W. 909 (Tex. Crim. App. 1898)
• Parties: SHIP v. STATE.
• Writing for the Court: Davidson
• Court: Texas Court of Criminal Appeals

Page 909

45 S.W. 909

SHIP v. STATE.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas.

May 18, 1898.

Appeal from district court, Bowie county; Howard Templeton, Judge.

Richard Ship was convicted of rape, and he appeals. Reversed.

John J. King, for appellant. W. W. Walling and Mann Trice, for the State.

DAVIDSON, J.

Appellant was convicted of rape, and his punishment assessed at confinement in the penitentiary for a term of five years; hence this appeal.

The prosecutrix testified that she had been on a visit to her grandfather, in the state of Tennessee, and was returning to her father's residence, in Delta county, in this state, on the train on which appellant was the porter. Shortly before reaching the town of Texarkana, she inquired of the conductor if her train would make connection with the train going from that point to Paris. She was informed that it would not, and that she would be compelled to spend the night in Texarkana. Upon reaching the depot at Texarkana, appellant approached the prosecutrix, and informed her that he would take her to a good place to spend the night. She agreed to go with him, he taking one of her bundles and she the other. After going a short distance, they ascended a flight of stairs, and found themselves in the rear room in the second story of a saloon building, where they spent the night together. She further testified that upon entering the room the defendant locked the door, and had intercourse with her. She says: "I cried, and asked the defendant to let me out; told him I would go back to the depot; and he said they would not treat me right, and would drag me out. He then proceeded to tear my clothes off me. I did not consent to him pulling my clothes off, and tried to keep him from it, but could not, as I was not as strong as he was. The defendant held me, and in pulling my clothes off he wrenched my back. He pulled all my clothes off, except my underskirt and drawers. After he took my clothes off, he carried me to the bed, and while he was dragging me, I hallooed, and he told me to hush. When we first got in the room, I hallooed and cried, and he told me to hush. When he got me on the bed, he threw me down on the bed. I was trying to stay out of the bed, and told him I did not want to get in bed with him, and wanted out of there. He called himself `Papa,' and said he would not hurt me. I never said anything, but cried and hallooed, and tried to pull loose. I did not feel safe because he had me locked up. He never threatened me, but picked up a hand valise, and set it down by the bed near him. I did not know what was in it, and was afraid he would kill me. Defendant then got in the bed, on top of me." She further says that he had intercourse with her without her consent. He did this three or four times during the night. She says that she tried to keep him from doing this all the time, and never did consent at any time. She further testified that after the first act of intercourse the defendant left the room, and was gone for some time and returned; that while he was gone she undertook to get out of the room, but the door was locked, and she did not succeed. The lock was described as being a spring lock that could be easily opened from the inside of the room, as it was only necessary to push the spring back in order to unlock it. On cross-examination, with reference to the defendant's action after they reached the room, she testified: "He first pulled off my cloak, and laid it on my basket; then pulled off my belt, and laid it on the table. He unhooked my dress. It had hooks and eyes in front, which he unfastened, commencing at my throat, and going down to where it stopped; and then he pulled it off of me. He got to my back, and pulled it off me over my back. He had my head thrown backwards, and I guess both sleeves came off at the same time. He next pulled off the skirt of my dress. He unfastened the hooks and eyes, and laid the skirt in a chair. He then unfastened the safety pins, and pulled off my underskirt. He put the safety pins back in my...