Trejo v. State

• Decision Date: 13 May 1903
• Parties: TREJO v. STATE.
• Court: Texas Court of Criminal Appeals

74 S.W. 546

TREJO v. STATE.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas.

May 13, 1903.

Appeal from District Court, Webb County; A. L. McLane, Judge.

Antonio Trejo was convicted of murder, and he appeals. Reversed.

Bethel Coopwood, for appellant. Howard Martin, Asst. Atty. Gen., for the State.

DAVIDSON, P. J.

Appellant was convicted of murder in the first degree, the penalty assessed being life imprisonment in the penitentiary.

On the night of the killing the witness De La Rosa and deceased met in a saloon about midnight. After drinking beer, they had some conversation, which witness says was in a joking manner, while others of the eye-witnesses thought it presaged a difficulty. The two went outside the saloon, and deceased embraced witness, and remarked, "They [referring to the people in the saloon] think we are going to fight, but we are too good friends to do that;" that deceased asked the witness "to go for a spin with him, and get a drink of mescal at Celestina's, who lives across the track." Another witness (Rodriquez, a shoemaker) was with them. The three went up a street north from the saloon across the track, and went to Celestina Aguilar's house. Deceased knocked on the door, and the door was either opened for him or he opened it, and went inside the room. This witness heard talking inside the room, but did not distinguish what was said. A moment after deceased entered the room, defendant came out, and passed Rodriquez and witness, and went up the street west. Just after defendant left, deceased came to the door, and told witness and Rodriquez they could go, as he intended to stay all night. Rodriquez and witness went down the street east until they reached the corner of a block, where Rodriquez asked witness to wait a few moments while he went home and secured some money with which to buy the drinks. Witness waited a while and until Rodriquez returned. Just as Rodriquez rejoined him, a shot was heard in the direction of Celestina's residence, and he said to Rodriquez, "Let's go and see what has happened." As he reached Celestina's, he heard the blow of a police whistle, and asked Celestina what had happened, and she replied, "The shot was fired just outside of her window." This witness further testifies he saw some one running up the street west, and started after him, but, failing to overtake him, returned to the residence of Celestina, and went around the corner of the house, and found deceased lying on the ground, face up, dead, and remarked to Celestina, "It is Brondo" (deceased), and asked her what she was going to do about it, and she said, "Notify the police." This shot occurred, according to this witness, about a half hour after they left Celestina's, and about 2:30 in the morning. A pistol was lying on the ground at the feet of deceased. On cross-examination he stated that when he went to the house to see who was shot he lighted a match Celestina had handed him through the door. She did not come out. After defendant came out of the house and walked west, witness did not see him again. There is a window in the west side of the house and a door in the south side. Deceased went in the door and defendant came out of the same door, and went straight west. The body was lying north and south, the head to the south and the feet north, immediately under the window. This witness testified that he did not know whether or not deceased had a pistol on the night in question. The testimony of Rodriquez is similar to that of the preceding witness. However, he did not see any match struck, as testified by De La Rosa, and did not go to the body of deceased with De La Rosa.

The physician testified in regard to post-mortem examination of deceased, stating that the shot which produced his death entered the back of his neck, and came out of his chin and windpipe in front, the spinal column being broken. He says the bullet might have been a 38 or 44 caliber, and caused death instantly. Celestina Aguilar states that she knew defendant and deceased; that defendant came to her house about 2 o'clock on the morning deceased was killed, and asked her to open the door, which she refused. He then forced his way into the house, grabbed, and tried to slap witness, and for a little while was striking at witness. She caught him, and held him, and heard two or three persons approaching the house. Deceased came to the door, knocked, and said, "Celestina, Celestina," and defendant did not want witness to answer, and was angry. She told him that her mouth was her own, and that she would answer. Deceased opened the door, came in, and asked for a drink of mescal. Defendant raised the mosquito bar, and stood up. She informed deceased she had no mescal, and defendant told deceased to get out of the room, in an angry voice; and deceased kept asking for mescal. Defendant then went to the door, stood, and said to deceased, "You stay with the whore; she has her customers that visit her at midnight;" and then took his departure. Deceased remained in the room, asking for a drink. Witness begged him to leave, informing him that defendant was a very bad man; she knew him well, and that he would return and do some injury. Deceased went to the door, and told some one outside to go away, that he was going to stay; and witness entreated deceased to leave also. Finally deceased concluded to leave, and went out of the door. Witness immediately shut and tied the door with a rope which defendant had cut. She was very sleepy, having been up two nights without sleep, and had come in on the train from Mexico, and immediately threw herself on the bed and went to sleep. She was aroused by a pistol shot near the window where her bed was situated. She got up from the bed, and saw defendant at the window. He remarked to her, "Hist, Celestina, be careful not to say that I did it." Smoke was coming in through the shutters of the window. She did not see any arms about defendant. He had changed his coat since he had left her house...