State v. Armstead

• Decision Date: 14 November 1955
• Docket Number: No. 44699,No. 1,44699,1
• Parties: STATE of Missouri, Respondent, v. Augustus ARMSTEAD, Appellant
• Court: Missouri Supreme Court

Page 577

283 S.W.2d 577

STATE of Missouri, Respondent, v. Augustus ARMSTEAD, Appellant.

No. 44699.

Supreme Court of Missouri, Division No. 1.

Nov. 14, 1955.

Cecil Block, Donald J. Sher, St. Louis, for appellant.

John M. Dalton, Atty. Gen., W. Don Kennedy, Asst. Atty. Gen., for respondent.

VAN OSDOL, Commissioner.

Defendant was convicted of knowingly receiving money, without any consideration therefor, from the earnings of a woman engaged in prostitution. Section 563.040 RSMo 1949, V.A.M.S. His punishment was assessed at six years in the penitentiary. He has appealed from the judgment entered.

Herein defendant-appellant contends the evidence was insufficient to sustain a conviction and the trial court erred in overruling defendant's motion for a judgment of acquittal.

Evidence was introduced tending to show that Jo Ann Huckleberry, a married woman but separated from her husband, had been living with one O'Neil. At about eight-thirty o'clock in the evening of December 22, 1953, Jo Ann, accompanied by O'Neil, went to the Reed Hotel in St. Louis. Jo Ann registered, and for the first time met defendant who was a bellboy in the hotel. He operated the elevator in taking her to a room which had been assigned to her on the third floor. While on the elevator defendant told Jo Ann that he had talked to O'Neil about her moving to the hotel, and that he (defendant), 'whenever he had these men for me,' would come to her room and conduct her 'to the rooms.' Defendant told Jo Ann that she was supposed to ask the men for ten dollars or fifteen or twenty, and not to ask below ten. Around midnight (of December 23d-24th), defendant came to Jo Ann's room and conducted her via the elevator to a room on the fourth floor where she had sexual intercourse with a man who gave her ten dollars. She then went to the elevator and gave the money to defendant; and 'he took four of it and gave me six back' and took her back to her room.

The trial court, acting on the theory that the evidence tended to show a common plan, admitted evidence tending to show that twice on the same evening of December 23d, once at about eight o'clock and again between nine forty-five and ten-fifteen, defendant in like manner had shown Jo Ann to rooms occupied by other men, in which rooms Jo Ann had sexual intercourse with men and received ten dollars for each sexual act. This money she gave defendant who, in each instance, 'took four and gave me six back.'

This evidence was substantial and sufficient in supporting a jury's finding of defendant's guilt of the crime charged, although this evidence consisted of the testimony of Jo Ann, a prostitute, who, the evidence shows had been formerly convicted of a felony. There were no mutually destructive inconsistencies in Jo Ann's testimony which destroyed the substantiality of it. The facts that the State's witness, Jo Ann, was a prostitute and had been convicted of a felony did not affect her competency as a witness; nor did they, in themselves, as a matter of law, destroy the substantiality of her testimony. These facts were for the consideration of the jury in passing on her credibility as a witness. It has often been correctly said that a jury has the peculiar province of judging the credibility of a witness and the weight and value of his testimony. An appellate court does not interfere with a jury's verdict supported by substantial evidence. In our opinion the trial court did not err in overruling defendant's motion for a judgment of acquittal. State v. Thursby, Mo.Sup., 245 S.W.2d 859, and cases therein cited.

Defendant contends the trial court erred in giving the State's main Instruction No. I by which the issue of defendant's guilt of the crime charged was submitted to the jury as follows,

'* * * The Court instructs you that if you find and believe from the evidence in this case, beyond a reasonable doubt, that on or about the 23rd. day of December, 1953, one Jo Ann Huckleberry was engaged in the practice of prostitution * * *, and if you further find and believe from the evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant at said time knew that the said Jo Ann Huckleberry was so engaged in said practice, if you find she was, and if you further find and believe from the evidence that on or about the 23rd. day of December, Jo Ann Huckleberry had received, as earnings from her practice of prostitution certain monies, lawful money of the United States, and if you further find and believe from the evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant * * *, on or about the 23rd. day of December, 1953, feloniously and knowingly did accept or receive a sum of money, to-wit: $4.00, in lawful money of the United States, or any part of said money from the said Jo Ann Huckleberry, without any consideration therefor, * * *.' (Our italics.)

Defendant introduced evidence tending to show that he was not present in the hotel after seven o'clock in the evening of December 23d. And the trial court gave Instruction No. II on the defense of alibi as follows,

'The defendant has interposed as a defense what is known in the law as an alibi; that is, that even if the offense was committed as charged he was at the time of the commission thereof at another and different place than that at which such offense was committed, and, therefore, was not and could not have been the person who committed the same. If the evidence leaves in your minds a reasonable doubt as to his presence at the place where the offense was committed at the time of the commission thereof, you will find him not guilty.'

It is defendant's position that Instruction No. I, submitting the issue of his guilt of crime committed 'on or about' December 23d, nullified his alibi defense. On the other hand, the State asserts there is no evidentiary foundation for an alibi instruction. It is argued that one could accept as true every word of defendant's evidence tending to support an alibi, and yet be justified in finding defendant was present at the time and place at the hotel (eight o'clock to about midnight) December 23d, when and where, according to the charge by indictment and the State's evidence, the crime was committed.

It was charged in the indictment, and the State's evidence supporting the charge tended to show, that the offense was perpetrated on December 23, 1953. The State seems to have committed itself to the theory the offense was perpetrated about midnight on that very date, 'or perhaps in the early morning hours of the 24th.' During defendant's cross-examination of Jo Ann, the witness mentioned that she had given money to defendant on December 30th, whereupon the Assistant Circuit Attorney stated (without the presence of the jury), 'May the record show that the only question on direct examination that was asked, other than the acts on December 23d, was whether she engaged in prostitution while at the hotel. * * * The reason I want this in the record is that while the Court has ruled it is proper to show the acts on the same night, that it is part of the plan, I did not mention any other specific acts of intercourse as to the 30th or any other date, nor did I bring out that he received any money from her earnings on any other night.' Yet, in his argument to the jury, the Assistant Circuit Attorney urged, '* * * She (Jo Ann) testified that she went into that hotel on December 22d--and I might point out on this before I forget it, the Court has instructed you that if you find that on or about December 23d--maybe the girl is mistaken about the date, I don't know, maybe she wasn't.'

Considering the crime as charged herein, in itself, its nature is not such as to make time the essence of the offense. State v. Lakin, Mo.Sup., 177 S.W.2d 500. But it seems that issues may be raised or joined which make time of decisive importance. In State v. Chittim, Mo.Sup., 261 S.W.2d 79, it was held that, where the issue was presented by the State that a crime was perpetrated at a particular time, August 7, 1951, and the issue was accepted by the defense, there was no foundation upon which to place an instruction as to any other time. In that case the instruction (containing the language 'on the 7th day of August, 1951, or at any other time within three years next before the filing of the information herein to-wit, October 6') nullified defendant's alibi defense which was supported by substantial evidence. See also State v. Socwell, 318 Mo. 742, 300 S.W. 680; State v. Campbell, 324 Mo. 249, 22 S.W.2d 645; State v. Taylor, 345 Mo. 325, 133 S.W.2d 336.

In the Taylor case the facts were peculiar in that defendant could not have been legally convicted on an alleged occurrence on January 14th. Defendant could have been convicted, if at all, on an alleged occurrence on January 17th. The State's main instruction submitted the issue of defendant's guilt 'on or about the 17th day of January, 1938, or at any time within three years next before the filing of the information in this cause.' The instruction was prejudicially erroneous because it authorized a conviction for crime committed on January 17th or at any time within three years prior to the filing of the information, which would include January 14th. In that case, it was suggested by the State that instructions similar to the State's instruction had been approved by this court in cases where time was not of the essence of the offense; but this court said that, for the reasons stated, the time element was important.

In State v. Childers, Mo.Sup., 268 S.W.2d 858, cited by the State, the information averred the offense occurred on November 16th, and the jury was justified in finding it occurred sometime during the month of November. The State's principal instruction predicated guilt upon a jury finding that defendant committed the offense 'on or about the 16th day of November, 1950, or any day within three years before March 3, 1953, the date of the filing of the information.' In that case defendant did not...