State v. Denby
| Decision Date | 15 April 1927 |
| Docket Number | 20244. |
| Citation | 255 P. 141,143 Wash. 288 |
| Parties | STATE v. DENBY et al. |
| Court | Washington Supreme Court |
Department 1.
Appeal from Superior Court, Spokane County; Witt, Judge.
Warren O. Denby and another were convicted of robbery, and they appeal. Affirmed.
John F Aiken, of Spokane, for appellants.
Chas W. Greenough, of Spokane, for the State.
FULLERTON J.
By an information filed in the superior court of Spokane county the appellants Denby and Linem were charged with the crime of robbery. The charging part of the information reads as follows:
'That the said defendants Warren O. Denby and Dick Linem alias Jack Armstrong, in the county of Spokane, state of Washington, on or about the 11th day of March, 1926, then and there being, did then and there willfully, unlawfully, and feloniously, with force and violence and fear of immediate injury to the person, take from the immediate presence of one George Arvanitis certain personal property, to wit, one hundred gallons of moonshine whisky, of the value of $600 the said property then and there being in the possession and under the dominion and control of said George Arvanitis, and belonging to said George Arvanitis.'
To the information the appellants demurred, which demurrer was overruled, whereupon they entered pleas of not guilty, and the case proceeded to trial. The jury returned a verdict of guilty as charged against both of the appellants, and they then moved in arrest of judgment and for a new trial. These motions the court denied and entered the judgment in accordance with the verdict. The appeal is from the judgment so entered.
From the facts presented at the trial it appears that on March 10, 1926, the complaining witness, George Arvanitis, a Greek resident of the city of Spokane, was approached by one Harry Woods and told that parties from Lewiston, Idaho, desired to purchase some 100 gallons of moonshine whisky. A meeting place was appointed, and in the evening of that day, at about 6 o'clock, Arvanitis went to a room occupied by Woods where he met the appellant Linem. At this meeting Arvanitis and Linem discussed the terms of a possible sale and purchase of liquor, Arvanitis agreeing to furnish the liquor at a price of $6 per gallon. Linem was not then ready to close a bargain, saying he would have to consult his partner and would let him know later whether he would take the liquor or not. On the evening of the 11th, Linem called Arvanitis and stated to him that he had received word from his partner, and that they would take the liquor, making an appointment with him at a certain time and place where they would agree as to the place to make delivery. At the appointed time Arvanitis drove in his car to the appointed place, and there met Linem, who told him that his partner was at the Spokane Hotel, and it was necessary for him to see him before final arrangements could be made, telling Arvanitis at the same time to drive down to the Spokane Hotel where the appellant would meet him. Arvanitis drove as directed, the appellant following in a Hudson coach. The appellant met some person at the hotel and talked with him for some moments, and then came to Arvanitis' car and told him that they were ready to take the liquor and for him to go and get it. The evidence is not very definite as to the place the liquor was to be delivered, but it is evident that they gave Arvanitis to understand that they would meet him on the road some place on his return trip. Arvanitis then drove to his cache, which was some distance from the city of Spokane, took from the cache seven 10-gallon and two 15-gallon kegs of moonshine whisky, loaded the kegs into his car, and started back to Spokane. After proceeding a short distance he overtook one Preston Moore, who was walking along the highway in the direction Arvanitis was going, and took him into his car. The car then proceeded about a mile when they were signaled to stop by a flash light. Arvanitis came to a stop and found himself nearly abreast of another car, described by him as the Hudson coach already mentioned. Two men approached him with drawn revolvers, one from the right side of the road, and the other from the left. Arvanitis did not submit tamely, and a struggle ensued during which he was dragged from his car, struck repeatedly, and finally subdued by a blow on the head from one of the revolvers. During the struggle several shots were fired from one the revolvers. The liquor was then transferred from Arvanitis' car to the car of the highwaymen, who then started down the road in the direction of Spokane. Arvanitis then called to Moore, who seems to have retreated to a place of safety at the beginning of the struggle, and the two entered upon the pursuit of the fleeing car. They had proceeded but a short distance when a shot from the pursued car punctured the radiator of Arvanitis' car, which, in a short time thereafter, caused him to abandon the pursuit. The sheriff's office was shortly thereafter notified of the robbery, and the appellants, from the description of them given by Arvanitis and Moore, were arrested on the next day in the city of Spokane.
The state produced as a witness a garage keeper in the city of Spokane, who testified that the appellant Linem, shortly after 7 o'clock in the evening of March 11th, came to his place of business and desired to rent a car for use latter on in the evening. The owner agreed to rent the car and prepared a rental contract, leaving it with an employee. Later on, some person came and took that car, signing the name 'D. Wilson' to the contract. The car was returned during the night of the 11th, and the speedometer reading showed that it had been driven by the renter somewhere near 75 miles. On the morning of the 12th, Linem came to the rental garage and reported that a door had been torn off the rented car while it was in use by the renter. The car was taken to a repair shop, and, while there, it was discovered that it contained two small holes resembling bullet holds, one in the right side of the cowl and one in the top.
The appellants were arrested in a rooming house in the city of Spokane and clothing was there found similar to the clothing the highwaymen were wearing at the time of the robbery. A...
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State v. Perkins
... ... as a whole, and if, when so considered, they properly state ... the law and include all the elements which constitute the ... crime charged, they are sufficient, even though some one of ... them may omit some essential part. State v. Denby, ... 143 Wash. 288, 255 P. 141; State v. Stratton, 170 ... Wash. 666, 17 P.2d 621; State v. Cox, 197 Wash. 67, ... 84 P.2d 357; State v. Refsnes, 14 Wash.2d 569, 128 ... P.2d 773 ... 'In ... line with that rule, instruction number 20, given by ... ...
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State v. Severns
...the instructions, the jury could not have been misled thereby, in view of the subsequent instruction.' We find nothing in the case of State v. Denby, supra, to respondent's contention. In that case the objection to the particular instruction was that it did not contain all the necessary ele......
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State v. Cox
... ... out above ... The ... instructions given, considered, together, fairly state the ... law with respect to the evidence received in this case in ... regard to the crime charged in the information. State v ... Denby, 143 Wash. 288, 255 P. 141; State ... [197 Wash. 78] v. Peck, 146 ... Wash. 101, 261 P. 779; State v. Sandros, 186 Wash ... 438, 58 P.2d 362 ... Finally appellant complains that he was prejudiced by a ... statement made by the court at the time it ... ...
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State v. Hartley, 29817.
... ... [170 P.2d 341] ... and if, when so considered, they properly state the law and ... include all the elements which constitute the crime charged, ... they are sufficient, even though some one of them may omit ... some essential part. State v. Denby, 143 Wash. 288, ... 255 P. 141; State v. Stratton, 170 Wash. 666, 17 ... P.2d 621; State v. Cox, 197 Wash. 67, 84 P.2d 357; ... State v. Refsnes, 14 Wash.2d 569, 128 P.2d 773 ... In line ... with that rule, instruction number 20, given by the court, ... ...