State v. Crunkleton
| Decision Date | 22 December 1925 |
| Docket Number | 26512 |
| Citation | 278 S.W. 982 |
| Parties | STATE v. CRUNKLETON |
| Court | Missouri Supreme Court |
Garry H. Yount, of Poplar Bluff, and John L. Moore, of Van Buren for appellant.
Robert W. Otto, Atty. Gen., and J. Henry Caruthers, Asst. Atty Gen., for the State.
Statement
A verified information was filed on January 31, 1924, in the circuit court of Wayne county, Mo., which, omitting the formal parts, reads as follows:
On February 4, 1924, defendants James Hanger and James Crunkleton filed in the Wayne circuit court an application for a change of venue on account of the prejudice of the inhabitants of said county. Said application was sustained, and the cause transferred to Iron county, Mo., and tried in the circuit court of said county. On June 19, 1924, defendant James Crunkleton filed in the circuit court of Iron county, Mo., a motion for a severance, which was sustained, and a separate trial was granted him. On June 20, 1924, the jury, before whom the case was tried. returned into court the following verdict:
'We, the jury in the case of the State of Missouri, Plaintiff, against James Crunketon, Defendant, find the defendant James Crunkleton guilty of burglary, as charged in the information in this case, and we fix his punishment therefor at 2 years' imprisonment in the penitentiary, and we further find the defendant James Crunkleton not guilty of larceny in connection with such burglary.
'Henry Adolph, Foreman of the Jury.'
Timely motions for a new trial and in arrest of judgment were filed and overruled. Thereafter allocution was had, judgment entered, sentence pronounced, and an appeal granted defendant to this court.
After hearing the oral arguments of counsel in this court, and reading the transcript of the testimony herein, we have reached the conclusion that the statement of the case by counsel for the state is fair and substantially correct, and we hereby adopt the same as follows:
The evidence on the part of the state tended to prove the following: That Williamsville Mercantile & Manufacturing Company, a corporation, organized under the laws of Missouri at Williamsville, Wayne county, Mo., was burglarized on the night of October 29, 1923, and that a large number of goods were stolen, consisting of automobile tires, ladies' shoes, bolt dress goods, shirts, suits, ties, suit cases, gloves, and numerous other items, totalling in value several hundred dollars. Entrance was gained to the store by breaking out a part of the sash of a back window. There was also evidence of an effort to break the panels out of a side door. This effort failed because of a large steel safe standing in front and against the door.
These goods were found on the morning of the 30th of October, 1923, at a strawstack in a farmer's field a short distance from the store, and recovered, and identified by the cost and selling prices marked thereon. The goods were brought to the store, and the suit cases containing merchandise were weighed, and the merchandise taken out and the cases filled with rocks and other material to the same weight, and along with the automobile tires were returned to the strawstack and placed under guard. On the night of the 31st of October, shortly after dark, the guards saw a car headed toward Williamsville stop in the road near the strawstack where they were secreted, and turn around and head back the other way and stop. In 8 or 10 minutes after the car stopped two or three men approached the strawstack talking to each other, and presently one whistled like he was calling a dog. Whereupon one of the guards whistled, thinking it was Mr. Holliday and the sheriff coming. When the men heard this whistle they turned and started to run. One of the guards commanded them to halt or he would shoot, but they continued to run, and the guard shot several times. They then saw the car leave, going back in the same direction from which they came, which was towards Ellsinore. The guards then went out to the road and met the sheriff and Mr. Holliday, who had just driven up. They got in the sheriff's car, and followed the first car mentioned. After driving up the road a short distance, they caught up with a man who was walking pretty rapidly, and whom they learned was James Crunkleton. He was carrying a shotgun. The sheriff placed him under arrest, and took him to the Williamsville store, and later took him to jail at Greenville.
While at the store Crunkleton stated that he had come there with James Hanger and Ernest Leeper; that these two men had come to him in a car and asked him to go down between Granite Bend and Leeper to get some automobile tires. One man asked him if he did not know that Leeper was a bad character, and that, when Leeper told him he was going down between Granite Bend and Mill Springs to get some automobile tires, they must have been stolen. Crunkleton said he did not think about that, and said that, after they got down there and got out of the car and went over in the field, he knew things were crooked. Crunkleton also stated that Leeper asked him to see Hanger and tell him that, if Hanger would drive Leeper to Poplar Bluff that night, he would give him $ 10.
It was shown by witness J. A. Faulkner that on the night of October 29th, while on his way home near Williamsville, he met a car about two miles from Williamsville which was going towards Williamsville, and recognized Hanger and Leeper in the car, but did not know Crunkleton at the time. He recognized him as the same man on the night that he was brought in. Witness had known Leeper ever since he was a baby.
It was shown by witness Thomas Faulkner, a brother of J. A. Faulkner, who lived together on the same farm, two miles and a half west of Williamsville, that he saw Leeper, Hanger, and Crunkleton on the night of October 31st. He knew Leeper, but did not know the other two men. They were going towards Williamsville just about sundown. Witness stated that defendant Crunkleton was one of the men with Leeper that night.
It was shown by James Ross that he had a conversation with Crunkleton after his arrest, in which he suggested that Crunkleton turn state's evidence, and tell what he knew about the burglary and larceny. Crunkleton told him that he would not do that because if he should swear against them they would both swear against him, and try to stick him, and that would be two against one.
It was shown by Sheriff Oliver of Carter county that he knew defendant Crunkleton, and that he saw him on the evening of the 31st of October between Ellsinore and Van Buren on the state highway in a car with James Hanger and Ernest Leeper, driving south towards Ellsinore at about 4:30 or a quarter to 5 in the evening. Ellsinore was on the road to Williamsville.
It was shown by Ray Alcorn, a merchant at Ellsinore, that on the evening of October 31st he saw Hanger and two other men in his car, but was not acquainted with the other men. They stopped at his place of business in Ellsinore, at which time Hanger told him that he was going to Poplar Bluff, and asked witness to go with him.
The evidence on behalf of defendant tended to prove the following:
It was shown by several witnesses that defendant James Crunkleton along with several others, loaded a car of lumber at Garwood near his home on the day of October 29th, and that he was at home that night and went to bed about 9 o'clock; that he arose the next morning about 5 to help his father do...
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