Williams v. State, 8 Div. 173.

• Decision Date: 07 April 1942
• Docket Number: 8 Div. 173.
• Parties: WILLIAMS v. STATE.
• Court: Alabama Court of Appeals

7 So.2d 511

30 Ala.App. 437

WILLIAMS v. STATE.

8 Div. 173.

Alabama Court of Appeals

April 7, 1942

Appeal from Circuit Court, Marshall County W.J. Haralson, Judge.

Roberts & Cunningham, of Gadsden, for appellant.

Thos S. Lawson, Atty. Gen., and John O. Harris, Asst. Atty. Gen for the State.

RICE Judge.

Appellant was convicted of the offense of murder in the second degree and his punishment fixed at imprisonment in the penitentiary for the term of fifteen years.

The evidence for the State tended to show that the decedent, Miss Ludie Williams, was killed on a Sunday night, in an automobile collision between the car in which she was riding and one driven by appellant.

The deceased was one of four occupants of an automobile driven by one Hoyt Pearce, headed north on the highway between Albertville and Boaz, in Marshall County--that is, the highway on Sand Mountain running towards Huntsville. This car was travelling at a speed of from twenty-five to thirty miles per hour.

The car driven by appellant, containing two other occupants, was going in the opposite direction; and, while there is a dispute in the testimony as to its speed, appellant himself, and his witnesses, say it was going at approximately fifty miles per hour--maybe a little more, maybe a little less.

The evidence discloses without conflict that the point of collision between the two cars was on the crest or rise of a hill, in a curve, and at the intersection of the Mount Vernon Road and the highway leading from Albertville to Boaz.

At the time of the collision the automobile driven by this appellant was physically in the drive lane of the automobile in which the deceased, Miss Ludie Williams, was riding.

The State's testimony further tended to show--we believe shows without conflict--that immediately before the collision there were three automobiles travelling south on said above mentioned highway, in a row, the last of the three being appellant's car. And that appellant, by his own testimony driving fifty miles per hour, ran his car into the car immediately in front of him, tore off the rear light and bent the fender of same; ran into the rear end of the next automobile; and then pulled or swerved his car across the highway and ran it into or against the north bound car in which deceased, Miss Ludie Williams, was riding.

It was not a head on collision. Appellant's car struck (meeting) the car in which deceased was riding between the left front wheel and the door, and knocked the said north bound car clear of the pavement save for about 12 or 14 inches.

State's witness Mashburn, a State Highway Patrolman, arrived on the scene several minutes after the collision. He helped extricate appellant from his wrecked automobile.

The said Mashburn testified that appellant appeared to be drunk; that he smelled whiskey on him; and that he found a pint bottle about half full of whiskey in appellant's car. Mashburn said he had had enough experience to know whether or not a man was drunk, and that in his opinion appellant was drunk at that time.

Mashburn further testified that he had pursued appellant's car across the mountain that night (before it had the above collision), and that appellant had side-swiped two other cars before hitting the car in which deceased was riding.

State witness Webb testified that he was driving across Sand Mountain to Boaz the night of the collision, and that he followed appellant's car some 12 or 13 miles from Guntersville. He said that appellant almost ran his car into the car driven by the witness; that witness followed appellant's car,...