State v. Deffenbaugh, 47735

Decision Date14 June 1975
Docket NumberNo. 47735,47735
Citation536 P.2d 1030,217 Kan. 469
PartiesSTATE of Kansas, Appellee, v. Jon Richard DEFFENBAUGH, Appellant.
CourtKansas Supreme Court

Syllabus by the Court

1. Adjudications of delinquency in juvenile court involving dishonesty or false statement constitute convictions of crime within the meaning of K.S.A. 60-421 and are admissible for the purpose of impeaching the credibility of a witness.

2. The record is examined in a criminal action in which the defendant was convicted of aggravated robbery and it is held for reasons set forth in the opinion that the trial court did not commit prejudicial error.

Edward A. McConwell, Shawnee Mission, argued the cause, and was on the brief for appellant.

Nick A. Tomasic, Dist. Atty., argued the cause, and Curt T. Schneider, Atty. Gen., was with him on the brief for appellee.

PRAGER, Justice:

This is a direct appeal in a criminal action in which the defendant was convicted of aggravated robbery under the provisions of K.S.A. 1972 Supp. 21-3427. The charge arose as the result of an armed robbery of the K. U. Medical Center pharmacy in Wyandotte county on April 11, 1973. The robbers were two unmasked young men armed with guns who forcibly compelled the pharmacist on duty to turn over to them a quantity of narcotics. Within a week after the robbery the Johnson county sheriff's office received information as to the location of the stolen drugs. A search warrant was obtained for defendant's residence. On execution of the search warrant drugs identified as those taken in the robbery were found in the possession of the defendant. Following his conviction after a jury trial the defendant-appellant, Jon Richard Deffenbaugh, has appealed to this court claiming trial errors.

The defendant's first point on this appeal is that the trial court erred in overruling the defendant's motion to suppress evidence consisting of a box containing narcotic drugs obtained in the search conducted at the defendant's place of residence on April 18, 1973. This is the identical point raised in State v. Deffenbaugh, 216 Kan. 593, 533 P.2d 1328 where we held the same evidence admissible in a criminal proceeding filed in Johnson county charging defendant with the unlawful possession of the same drugs. The factual circumstances concerning the sources of information of the police authorities in regard to the location of the drugs and the issuance and execution of the search warrant are set forth in full in that opinion. In the Johnson county case the defendant's objection to the evidence was that the information obtained by the police and provided the magistrate as a basis for the search was the product of an illegal search of the defendant's motor vehicle and his person at the police station and as a result thereof the search warrant and the evidence obtained thereby were tainted by the 'fruit of the poisonous tree doctrine' and therefore the evidence obtained on execution of the search warrant on April 18 should have been suppressed. We do not deem it necessary to review in detail here the factual circumstances and the reasons for our decision in the prior action. We have considered the additional authorities cited by counsel at oral argument in this case and have concluded that they do not justify any change from our prior determination of the issues presented. We, therefore, reject the defendant's first point of claimed error for the reasons fully set forth in our opinion in State v. Deffenbaugh,supra.

The defendant's second and fourth points on this appeal relate to the identification of the defendant by the pharmacist who was robbed at gunpoint at the K. U. Medical Center. The defendant moved to suppress the pharmacist's testimony which identified the defendant at a police lineup and again in the courtroom at the trial of the case. The factual circumstances surrounding the identification are undisputed and are essentially as follows: Following the search of the defendant's residence and the discovery of the drugs in his possession on April 18, 1973, he was arrested and taken to the Johnson county courthouse. The pharmacist, Jeff Menzie, was called to the courthouse to view a lineup of possible suspects who might be involved in the medical center robbery. Menzie testified that he entered the Johnson county courthouse, got off the elevator, and immediately observed in the crowd an individual who was involved in the robbery. He immediately informed a police officer he had seen the man who committed the robbery and identified the defendant as the one who did it. Menzie further testified that prior to this identification no one directed his attention to the defendant and that the defendant was not dressed in any way that distinguished him from the four or five other individuals who were in the hall at the time. Following this encounter a lineup was conducted by the police. There Menzie again identified the defendant Deffenbaugh as the robber. At the trial Menzie positively identified the defendant in the courtroom. The evidence showed that menzie had ample opportunity to view the perpetrator of the crime at the scene. The room was extremely well lighted, neither of the robbers wore a mask. The defendant faced Menzie for a period of approximately 30 seconds during which time defendant made no effort whatsoever to conceal his identity. Menzie had no hesitancy at all in identifying the defendant as one of the persons who had robbed the pharmacy.

Prior to trial the defendant filed a motion to suppress the identification by Menzie claiming in substance that the conduct of the police in allowing the defendant to be observed and identified by Menzie prior to the lineup was a violation of the defendant's rights under the federal and state constitutions. We are, of course, concerned in any case where a question is raised that the identification of the accused was unnecessarily suggestive and conducive to an irreparable mistaken identification. Such a procedure constitutes a denial of due process of law. (Neil v. Biggers, 409 U.S. 188, 93 S.Ct. 375, 34 L.Ed.2d 401.) In Neil the Supreme Court of the United States held that whether an accused's pretrial confrontation by an eyewitness to a crime is so unnecessarily suggestive and conducive to irreparable mistaken identification that the accused is denied due process of law must be determined from the totality of the circumstances. In the opinion in Neil the court stated that the factors to be considered in evaluating the likelihood of misidentification include the opportunity of the witness to view the criminal at the time of the crime, the witness's degree of...

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15 cases
  • State v. Mitchell, 55128
    • United States
    • Kansas Supreme Court
    • 21. Oktober 1983
    ...misidentification." 227 Kan. at 378, 607 P.2d 61. See also State v. Hall, 220 Kan. 712, 717, 556 P.2d 413 (1976); State v. Deffenbaugh, 217 Kan. 469, 536 P.2d 1030 (1975). It must be remembered "reliability is the linchpin in determining the admissibility of identification testimony ...." M......
  • State v. Mitchell
    • United States
    • Kansas Supreme Court
    • 11. Mai 2012
    ...time between the crime and the confrontation. See, e.g., State v. Ponds, 227 Kan. 627, 630, 608 P.2d 946 (1980); State v. Deffenbaugh, 217 Kan. 469, 471, 536 P.2d 1030 (1975). These are commonly called the Biggers factors because they derived from the United States Supreme Court's decision ......
  • Shirley v. Smith
    • United States
    • Kansas Supreme Court
    • 7. März 1997
    ...or false statement shall be inadmissible for the purpose of impairing his or her credibility." Shirley cites State v. Deffenbaugh, 217 Kan. 469, 474, 536 P.2d 1030 (1975), as precedent for admitting adjudications which do not amount to criminal convictions. There, the court held: "Adjudicat......
  • State v. Fisher
    • United States
    • Kansas Supreme Court
    • 9. April 1977
    ...means more than being allowed to confront a witness physically-it includes the right of effective cross-examination. State v. Deffenbaugh, 217 Kan. 469, 536 P.2d 1030; State v. Wilkins, 215 Kan. 145, 523 P.2d 728; State v. Montanez, 215 Kan. 67, 523 P.2d In the case at bar, Mrs. Fisher was ......
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