State v. Randolph
| Decision Date | 26 November 1947 |
| Docket Number | 508 |
| Citation | 45 S.E.2d 132,228 N.C. 228 |
| Parties | STATE v. RANDOLPH. |
| Court | North Carolina Supreme Court |
Criminal prosecution upon indictment charging that defendant and another 'unlawfully, willfully, maliciously and feloniously with intent to kill, did assault, beat and wound one Clyde Bolton with a deadly weapon, to wit, a certain knife, to the great damage and serious injury of said Clyde Bolton, which injury did not result in the death of the said Clyde Bolton, contrary to the statute', etc.
The evidence offered by the State in the trial court tends to show substantially this account of the pertinent particulars of the difficulty between defendant and one Clyde Bolton, a taxi driver. It took place on March 10, 1947, Monday morning between the hours of 1 and 2 o'clock, on Graham Street just north of the intersection between that street, which runs in northsouth direction, and Trade Street, which runs in an east-west direction, in the city of Charlotte, N. C. Clyde Bolton, traveling in his taxicab east on West Trade Street and reaching said intersection, made a left turn into North Graham Street. A truck driven by defendant backed up into North Graham Street to permit the Bolton taxicab to pass on through the intersection into North Graham Street. As the taxicab passed the truck Bolton hearing some one call out 'Cab', stopped the taxicab just a few feet into North Graham Street. Defendant got out of the truck and came up to the taxicab, took hold of the left front door and jerked it open and said to Bolton 'You white s. o. b.' according to Bolton, or 'You white s. o. b. I'll kill you', according to passenger in the taxicab, and stabbed Bolton in the left upper arm with a knife. Whereupon, Bolton turned in his seat and kicked at defendant in order to keep defendant 'off of him', and defendant then cut Bolton again by slashing him with the knife across the upper left arm. Bolton had nothing in hand then, but got out of the taxicab and turned around and reached under the front seat for a tire tool, and as he did so, defendant cut him again across the left side of the lower back, along the belt line--saying 'You G--d--s. o. b., I'll lynch you here in the street '. The witnesses for the State differed in testimony as to whether Bolton hit one of defendants. One witness testified that Bolton attempted to keep defendant 'off of him with the tire tool, but at no time did he hit * * * defendant '. Another testified that he saw Bolton 'beating one of the defendants over the head with the tire iron '. To sew up the wounds on Bolton, six stitches were taken in his back and ten stitches in his left arm. The knife and tire iron were taken by the police. Defendants, through their counsel, requested the production of the knife and tire iron, and, not being produced, defendants objected to any reference thereto by the witnesses. Objection overruled. Exception.
Defendant, reserving exception to denial of his motion for judgment as of nonsuit, and as witness for himself, gave this version: That as his truck entered Trade Street, Clyde Bolton rapidly drove his cab, going east on Trade Street, and suddenly started to turn into Graham Street, and if he, defendant, had not pulled his truck sharply to the left, the taxi would have run into him and damaged the truck or the taxi or both; that the taxi ran on around the truck and into Graham Street and stopped; that he, defendant, had to back his loaded truck back into North Graham Street, so as to straighten the truck to go on across; that as he backed into Graham Street to go across Trade, his engine choked and caused him to stop; that as soon as his engine choked down, Bolton got out of his cab, opening the cab door on the side next to the truck, with a tire iron in his hand, and said: 'You tried to wreck my cab, you black s. o. b. ', and as Bolton opened the door and attempted to come on him with the tire iron, he, defendant, pulled out his knife, opened it, and jumped out of his truck and met Bolton in the street; that Bolton drew the tire iron on him and was in the act of coming down on his, defendant's head, when defendant grabbed with one hand the upraised arm of Bolton, and cut Bolton several times on the shoulder with a small knife in the other. Then being asked on cross-examination whether he fought willingly, defendant said: .
Defendant renewed motion for judgment as of nonsuit. Denied. Exception.
There is no exception to the charge of the court as given. However, the court declined, in response to request of defendant, in apt time and in open court, to charge the jury upon the right of defendant to self-defense, under the evidence,--stating that there is no evidence of selfdefense. Defendant excepted.
Verdict: The defendant, Richard Randolph, guilty as charged in the bill of indictment.
Judgment: Imprisonment for a period of six months, etc., pronounced.
Defendant named appeals to Supreme Court and assigns error.
Harry M. McMullan, Atty. Gen., and T. W. Bruton, Hughes J. Rhodes and Ralph M. Moody, Asst. Attys. Gen., for the State.
Thaddeus A. Adams, of Charlotte, for defendant-appellant.
The brief of defendant, appellant, as we understand it, assigns error in four respects in the trial court: I. Denial of his motion in arrest of judgment. II. Admitting testimony as to the use of the alleged deadly weapon, 'a certain knife', without requiring the production of it in ...
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