Watson v. Grimes

• Decision Date: 08 February 1963
• Docket Number: Nos. 21912,21913,s. 21912
• Citation: 218 Ga. 631,129 S.E.2d 795
• Parties: Bill WATSON v. T. Ralph GRIMES, Sheriff. Bud HARPER v. T. Ralph GRIMES, Sheriff.
• Court: Georgia Supreme Court

Page 795

129 S.E.2d 795

218 Ga. 631

Bill WATSON v. T. Ralph GRIMES, Sheriff.

Bud HARPER v. T. Ralph GRIMES, Sheriff.

Nos. 21912, 21913.

Supreme Court of Georgia.

Feb. 8, 1963.

Syllabus by the Court

In a habeas corpus proceeding where the requisition of the Governor of the demanding State conclusively shows that the crime charged was committed in this State and not in the demanding State, the person so accused can not be extradited as a fugitive from justice under the Act of Congress of 1793.

Daniel Duke, Clyde, Henley, Atlanta, for plaintiff in error.

Paul Webb, Sol. Gen., Eugene L. Tiller, Asst. Sol. Gen., Atlanta, for defendant in error.

HEAD, Presiding Justice.

Requisition was made by the Governor of Pennsylvania to the Governor of Georgia for the extradition of Bill Watson and Bud Harper. The petitions for habeas corpus of Watson and Harper make the same contention, that the joint indictments against them, on which the Governor of Pennsylvania based his requisitions, show that the County of Washington, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, has no jurisdiction to try them. The cases will be considered together.

The requisitions of the Governor of Pennsylvania state that the petitioners are charged 'with having committed an act or acts in the State of Georgia, intentionally resulting in the crimes of Accessory before the fact, Accessory after the fact, Conspiracy to Fraudulent Conversion and Fraudulent Pretense, which I certify to be crimes under the Laws of this State, committed in the County of Washington in this State, * * *' The indictments attached to the requisitions show that the crimes charged were 'through acts committed in the State of Georgia which intentionally resulted in the aforesaid crimes in Washington County, Pennsylvania.'

It is the contention of the respondent in the habeas corpus proceedings that the extradition warrants issued by the Governor of Georgia were properly issued under Section 6 of the Uniform Criminal Extradition Act, adopted in this State on February 21, 1951, to become effective on March 1, 1951, (Ga.L.1951, pp. 726, 728, Code Ann. § 44-407), which provides: 'The Governor of this State may also surrender, on demand of the executive authority of any other State, any person in this State charged in such other State in the manner provided in Section 3 [Code Ann. § 44-404] with committing an act in this State, or in a third State, intentionally resulting in a crime in the State whose executive authority is making the demand, and the provisions of this Act not otherwise inconsistent, shall apply to such cases, even though the accused was not in that State at the time of the commission of the crime, and has not filed therefrom.'

The present cases are controlled by the rulings of this court in Jackson v. Pittard, 211 Ga. 427, 86 S.E.2d 295. In the J...