State v. Eaves, 42545
| Decision Date | 12 November 1951 |
| Docket Number | No. 2,No. 42545,42545,2 |
| Citation | 243 S.W.2d 129,362 Mo. 670 |
| Parties | STATE v. EAVES |
| Court | Missouri Supreme Court |
Cecil Block, St. Louis, and Louis E. Zuckerman, St. Louis, of counsel, for appellant.
J.E. Taylor, Atty.Gen., A. Bertram Elam, Asst.Atty.Gen., for respondent.
In the circuit court of the city of St. Louis the appellant was charged with five prior convictions of felonies and robbery in the first degree by means of a deadly and dangerous weapon. Upon trial he was convicted as charged and sentenced to life imprisonment in the state penitentiary.
On the afternoon of January 31, 1949, a robbery occurred in the home of Warren Glenn, located at 5015 South Kingshighway in St. Louis, Missouri. Just before the robbery a man carrying a bag containing bread and some groceries was seen coming up the front steps of the house where the robbery occurred. He gained entrance by ringing the door bell and was admitted by one of the occupants, Alice Hunter. He followed her back to a room where there were members of the family and some guests, in all, eight or nine persons. As he followed Alice Hunter, she yelled, "What's the matter with this man, is he crazy?" With a gun in his right hand, he compelled all those present to go into the kitchen and sit there with their hands over their eyes. He went into the bedroom and while there took from the purse of Jerry Sneed, a guest, $250.00.
At the trial he was positively identified by Warren Glenn, Myrtle Berberich and Jerry Sneed as the person who committed the robbery. Other witnesses who were present testified they thought the appellant was the man who committed the robbery, while the remainder of the persons who were present during the robbery were unable to identify him.
There was evidence that appellant had driven his family to Cedar Hill that afternoon. There was substantial evidence that he was insane, in fact, he had been confined for about a year to the State Hospital for the Insane at Fulton, Missouri.
We cannot say that the state's evidence is inherently incredible, self-destructive or opposed to known physical facts; therefore, we must hold that there is substantial evidence to support the jury verdict of guilty of robbery in the first degree with a dangerous and deadly weapon. State v. Gregory, 339 Mo. 133, 96 S.W.2d 47.
Appellant contends that the court erred in giving instruction No. 4, which was an insanity instruction. The first part of this instruction reads: "In this case insanity is interposed by the defendant's counsel as an excuse for the charge set forth in the amended information: ***." Appellant contends that the above quoted part of the instruction is misleading and disparaged the defense of insanity.
The state relies on the following cases to show that this part of the instruction is not erroneous: State v. Duestrow, 137 Mo. 44, 38 S.W. 554, 39 S.W. 266; State v. Holloway, 156 Mo. 222, 56 S.W. 734; State v. Paulsgrove, 203 Mo. 193, 101 S.W. 27; State v. Barbata, 336 Mo. 362, 80 S.W.2d 865; State v. Murphy, 338 Mo. 291, 90 S.W.2d 103; and State v. Hardy, 359 Mo. 1169, 225 S.W.2d 693. The opinions in the first three cases relied upon by the state show that the instructions on insanity contain almost identical language complained of by the appellant, but evidently no such complaint as is made here was raised because none of the three cases discusses such a question. The opinions in the last three cases relied upon by the state do not show whether the instructions contained the language complained of by the appellant in this case. At any rate, none of the above cases discusses the question raised here.
The rule is now settled that an instruction which tends to disparage a legal defense is erroneous. State v. Smith, 358 Mo. 1, 212 S.W.2d 787. In the case of State v. Crowell, 149 Mo. 391, loc. cit. 396, 50 S.W. 893, 894, 73 Am.St.Rep. 402, the instruction read, "The court instructs the jury that, though an alibi may be a well-worn defense, yet it is a legal one, to the benefit of which the defendant is entitled". In ruling the case, we said:
We think the words, "by the defendant's counsel as an excuse," used in this instruction tend to disparage appellant's plea of insanity. The use of the words, "as an excuse," is unfortunate. Of course, strictly speaking, they mean "as a defense," and those words should have been used. In the case of State v. Liolios, 285 Mo. 1, 225 S.W. 941, loc. cit. 948, it was ruled that the words, "by appellant's counsel," "might readily be understood by the jury in a sense highly prejudicial to the appellant" and held to be "unfortunate" both in that case and in the case of State v. McCann, 329 Mo. 748, 47 S.W.2d 95. In both of those cases, temporary insanity at the time of the commission of the crime was interposed as a defense. Both of those cases were reversed on other grounds but the opinions stated that on another trial the expression, "by defendant's counsel," might well be omitted.
In ruling the Liolios case, we said, 225 S.W. loc. cit. 948: "Whatever might be said about the propriety of such a statement in an instruction in a case where present insanity at the time of the trial is presented as a defense, as in State v. Duestrow, 137 Mo. 44, loc. cit. 69, 38 S.W. 554, 39 S.W. 266, where such an instruction was given, we think it an unnecessary and unfortunate expression in a case, such as the present, where temporary insanity at the time of the commission of the crime charged is interposed as a defense."
We have already stated that the Duestrow case, supra, did not discuss this question. In fact, in regard to the instructions in that case, all the court said was as follows, 137 Mo. loc. cit. 88, 38 S.W. 566: ...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
State v. Graham
...Wilson, Mo., 286 S.W.2d 756; State v. Whalen, 234 Mo. 539, 137 S.W. 881.6 State v. Hartman, 364 Mo. 1109, 273 S.W.2d 198.7 State v. Eaves, 362 Mo. 670, 243 S.W.2d 129; State v. Lindner, Mo., 282 S.W.2d 547.8 State v. Click, Mo., 57 S.W.2d 1077; State v. Vanarsdall, Mo., 273 S.W. 733; State ......
-
State v. White
...309 S.W.2d 602, 606(7); State v. Baber, Mo., 297 S.W.2d 439, 443(11); State v. Baker, Mo., 277 S.W.2d 627, 631(11); State v. Eaves, 362 Mo. 670, 243 S.W.2d 129, 132(6); State v. Fenley, 309 Mo. 520, 275 S.W. 36, 40(10, 11); State v. Butler, Mo.App., 309 S.W.2d 155, 159(5). Consult also Stat......
-
State v. Swinburne, 46829
...as increasing the legal burden resting on defendant to prove insanity by the preponderance of the evidence. See also: State v. Eaves, 362 Mo. 670, 243 S.W.2d 129; State v. Johnson, Mo., 267 S.W.2d 642, 44 A.L.R.2d 973. We note by analogy that this court has recently held erroneous a require......
-
State v. Davis
...and disparages the defense. It is true that an instruction which tends to disparage a legal defense is erroneous. State v. Eaves, 362 Mo. 670, 243 S.W.2d 129, 130 (1951); State v. Crowell, 149 Mo. 391, 50 S.W. 893 (1899); State v. Smith, 358 Mo. 1, 212 S.W.2d 787 (1948); State v. Johnson, 2......