State v. Gause
| Decision Date | 11 December 1946 |
| Docket Number | 580 |
| Citation | 40 S.E.2d 463,227 N.C. 26 |
| Parties | STATE v. GAUSE. |
| Court | North Carolina Supreme Court |
Criminal prosecution instituted in the County of Brunswick, State of North Carolina, upon indictment charging defendant with the murder of one H. J. Williamson, and upon motion of defendant removed to the County of New Hanover for trial.
The evidence offered upon the trial in Superior Court, as shown in the case on appeal and necessary to a proper understanding of the questions considered in disposing of this appeal, tends to show this pertinent factual situation: H. J. Williamson, a white man, died from gun shot wounds received on Saturday night, 23 February, 1946. At that time he resided in the Gause Landing community, southwest of the town of Shallotte, on the public road leading in general northeast to southwest direction, from that town to Gause Landing, in Brunswick County, North Carolina. The front steps of the house were seven yards from the edge of the road. Defendant, nicknamed Scooper, then resided west of and about three-quarters of a mile from the Williamson home. Between these two houses, Will Hill resided about one hundred yards from the Williamson home. Joe Gause, a brother of defendant resided beyond the home of defendant, something like a mile and a quarter from the Williamson home. In going from and to his home and to and from Shallotte, defendant would pass the Williamson home along the public road.
On the late afternoon of the above date, before dark, defendant and another colored man, named Luke Gause (of no kin to defendant), who lived between the Williamson home and Shallotte, were traveling along the public road going in the direction of defendant's home and passing the Williamson home. Defendant was cursing, for which Williamson, who was in front of his home, upbraided him. An altercation between the two ensued. Williamson, a very strong and robust man weighing 235 pounds and much larger than defendant, knocked defendant down with his fist. Defendant came up with a knife. Whereupon, Williamson got his gun from his front porch (having just put it there after shooting rabbits), and shot at defendant two or three times, running him off down the road toward the Will Hill house, where he stopped. He said he was shot. He tried in vain to buy a gun from Will Hill. Then he went on in direction of his own home.
About an hour later, around 8 o'clock, and after dark, H. J Williamson was shot while sitting in the front or sitting room of his home, next to the window in the west end of the house. The shot was from without the house, and through the window.
Will Hill, as witness for the State, testified: That he heard one shot after dark; that before that he heard 'someone passing talking * * * more like men than women'; that they went right up the road * * * toward Shallotte; that after they passed, he heard a gun fire--and that 'it might have been fifteen minutes, something like that.'
Luke Gause, also witness for the State, testified: That after Mr Williamson shot 'behind Scooper,' Ches Gause and Mosser Hill, colored men, came over to Mr. Williamson's and they and he (Luke) stayed there about fifteen minutes; that they then went, in the direction of defendant's home, to George Bland's; that, after staying there about 25 or 30 minutes, he and Ches came back up the road, Ches turning off to go to his home before they reached Mr. Williamson's house; that it was dark then, and a gun fired when he passed Mr. Williamson's; that he 'didn't see anybody with any gun, just heard it fire'; and that he was about 75 yards away, and went 'in the opposite direction.'
Joe Gause, also a witness for the State, testified: That defendant, his brother, came to his house around 8 or 8:30 on night of 23 February, 1946; that he had a 12 gauge gun which he left there; that 'he was all wet up and muddy'; that 'his hands were bleeding, blood dripping off his fingers'; that he said Mr. Williamson had shot him three times; that 'I understood him to say he had shot him back'; that defendant wanted to be carried to his mother's, to get her to do something for the wounded place where he was shot; and that on the way a car came up behind the truck and defendant jumped out and ran.
Defendant surrendered the following Wednesday.
An alleged confession of defendant was offered in evidence in which a statement in part as follows is attributed to him: 'that * * * Mr. Jim shot him and hit him in the hand and he started running and * * * he shot him in the other hand'; that 'he went on home and got a 12 gauge shot gun and picked up two shells * * * and started back to shoot Mr. Jim, as Mr. Jim had shot him; that he met up with Luther Gause and Charles Gause and they walked down the road with him until they got opposite Charles Gause's home and Charles said he would go on home, and went on home, but that Luther Gause proceeded down the road with him and that Luther walked on when he got to Mr. Williamson's, and that he looked through the window and saw Mr. Williamson sitting in the room; that the curtain was half down; that he * * * knew it was him and aimed at him along about the shoulder and shot him * * * but that he turned and ran * * * and went to his father in law's house where his wife was and told them that he had shot Mr. Williamson because Mr. Williamson had shot him; that he went to his brother Joe Gause's and told Joe he had shot Mr. Jim, and left his gun at Joe's * * *.'
There was other evidence tending to show that there were eleven perforations in the skin across the upper arm and chest (in diameter about three inches) of the body of H. J. Williamson; that there were 11 or 12 holes in the window and screen; and that a wadding (indicating buck shot) fired from a 12 guage gun, was found in the yard about twenty feet from the end of the house.
Further evidence was offered by the State tending to show the sanity of defendant, and by the defendant tending to...
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Cole v. Stevenson
...1973). Illustrative of this exception to the general rule are State v. Johnson, 227 N.C. 587, 42 S.E.2d 685 (1946) and State v. Gause, 227 N.C. 26, 40 S.E.2d 463 (1946) where the North Carolina Supreme Court reviewed on appeal challenges to jury instructions which were incorrect as a matter......
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