Wayne
F. Woodruff was convicted of the murder of Myron D
Southerland, the verdict containing no recommendation of
mercy. His motion for new trial as amended was overruled, and
he excepted.
The
body of the deceased was found in a cabin in a grove in Charlton County near St. George 'about a week'
after July 13, the date of the alleged crime, the exact time
not being shown by the evidence. A pair of glasses found with
the body was identified as belonging to the deceased, who
lived in Jacksonville, Florida, and a dentist of that city
identified the body as being that of the deceased by an
examination of the latter's teeth, the dentist's
record showing that about two years previously he had made a
bridge for the deceased. This bridge was found in the room of
the deceased and fitted his teeth. The defendant made no
report of the death of the deceased, but was arrested in El
Paso, Texas, on July 21, where he at first told an officer
that he knew nothing of the killing, but later 'admitted
he killed this fellow and how it happened--he said it was an
accident.' He introduced no evidence on the trial, but
made a statement, claiming that he accidentally shot the
deceased while they were target-shooting at the cabin where
the body of the latter was found.
The
following is considered a sufficient statement of other
evidence adduced.
J. O
Sikes testified: 'As sheriff of the county, on or about
July 13 of this year, or some few days after that, I received
a telephone message that a body had been found in an old
abandoned house in a part of the county known as the
'Bend.' When I left to go down there I called the
Seashole Funeral Home to send an ambulance down there. When
the ambulance came the body was taken up and carried to
Jacksonville. The body was in bad condition, having been
there for about a week. There were signs that buzzards had
been there. We found a pair of glasses, a glass case, fifty
cents, a quarter, and two pennies. No pocketbook was found
there. We empaneled a jury and held an inquest. * * * There
was a further investigation of the case. We left there and
went to Brithwell's across the State line and talked to a
Miss Johnson, who identified the glasses and case as
belonging to Mr. Myron
Southerland. The glasses and case were left with Mr
Whittington of the Jacksonville homicide squad after we got
through talking with her. Those are the glasses and case that
she told us belonged to Myron Southerland.'
Marjorie
Johnson testified: 'I live in Jacksonville, Florida, and
had known Myron D. Southerland about two years. I knew him
quite well and know that he wore glasses. The last time I
saw him was on July 13 about two miles south of
St. George, while I was visiting my sister. I was sitting at
the dining room table. That's about twenty yards from the
house to the road. I could see out, but he couldn't see
in. I knew the car and I knew Southerland well, and he passed
and I knew it was him. I was familiar with his guns and
rifle, knew them pretty well. So far as I know, I don't
know of but two rifles he had.'
Dr.
Earl G. Knocke testified: 'I live in Jacksonville. * * *
During the month of July, 1947, I identified the body of a
man. It was the body of a man named Southerland. The police
department called me. * * * They told me they had found a
receipt of mine for $50, I believe, in his room. * * * Well,
fortunately, I had a complete X-ray examination which was
taken on the 5th of March of that year, and I had my own
record, my appointment book and my card, which identified
everything that I did for him, and I was able to point out
from the X-ray the identical teeth that existed in this
man's mouth, plus a bridge which fitted exactly into the
man's mouth. The bridge could be dropped over the two
teeth to which it was anchored in the lower jaw and dropped
into position on the teeth, and that bridge he had left at
home and they found it in his room. There are no teeth of any
human being that are alike, and I could go from tooth to
tooth over every bit of his mouth. I would stake my oath that
they were the remains of Myron D. Southerland.'
L. S.
Eddins testified: 'I investigated an alleged murder
committed in July, 1947, near St. George, Georgia. I
didn't know Myron Southerland or the defendant in this
case. I went to the cabin where it is alleged to have taken
place. While there I heard the defendant make a voluntary
statement that he was standing about middle way the cabin
doing some target shooting toward this end of the cabin where
the chimney used to be, and that Dickie Southerland was
standing at this door, this front door, and that when he shot
his pistol out this opening, the old chimney opening, he
brought it back up when it fired and it recoiled and fired
again, and Southerland standing over to his left, and he
heard him moan and looked around and saw him fall by the
door. The door the deceased was shooting out of was in the
front of the house, although there is a door on the opposite side same as this door. The door and chimney
openings are at 90 degrees. The defendant says he was
shooting out of this chimney opening, about 90 degrees from
the door in which he says Southerland was target shooting out
of. In my opinion it would not be possible, if the gun had
fired accidentally, for him to have shot the deceased in the
manner in which he was shot unless he was accidentally
pointing it at him at the same time. The deceased was to his
left, immediately to his left in a 90 degree angle. This is
the bullet hull from a .22 Hornet rifle. There was a .22
rifle recovered. I stated from what the defendant told us it
was a 90 degree angle. He would have to be pointing it
accidentally in order to accidentally shoot the man.'
Henry
Ephraim testified: 'I was with the defendant in
Jacksonville in July this year. He came up to a sandwich
place that night, and we went out together along with Jack
and three girls. We rode out to a place and bought some
whisky. We were riding in a car that the defendant was
driving. * * * On the party I paid for my own drinks. The
defendant paid for everything else.'
W. C.
Wolverington testified: 'I am chief detective for the
City of El Paso police department. I knew the defendant from
the 21st of July. * * * On July 21 I arrested him in El Paso,
Texas. He made a voluntary statement in my office after I
told him he was being held for the murder of a party close to
Jacksonville, Florida. He told me he didn't know anything
about it. Before he made any other
statement my men had taken the guns off him in my office and
in my presence. Those are the guns, a .22 rifle, a Savage and
a scope sight and a German make automatic pistol, about a .32
calibre. This pocketbook had between fifty and sixty dollars
in it. * * * After the defendant had denied any knowledge of
this he made another voluntary statement. He admitted that he
killed this fellow and how it happened. He said it was an
accident. He said he shot him in the back of the head with
this .32 German make pistol. He didn't tell me what
county he shot him in, but I believe he said it was over the
county line in Georgia, but didn't make mention of the
county. The defendant made two statements to me, an oral and
then a written statement which I have. In the statement he
made to me he said it was an accident. He said they pulled
into this little grove, and there was a little
log cabin in this grove, and they went inside, and after they
were there a little while they started to do some target
practice, and Southerland was in one end of the cabin
shooting out of the door with a .22 at a knot on a pine tree,
and he was at the other end of the cabin shooting out of the
door at a piece of dirt on a log--that he was going to shoot
at that. He said he fired one shot at the log, at the dirt on
the log, and this gun, the safety didn't work, he said,
and the recoil came back and some way the gun went off and he
heard Southerland groan, and he knew then that he had shot
him. I examined this pistol very carefully. It's a German
make pistol. He showed us the safety being out of order, and
I looked at it but didn't make a thorough examination. I
couldn't tell you whether the safety was out of order or
not. He showed it to me, but I didn't try to work it to
see whether it was out of order or not. The defendant signed
a waiver of extradition and willingly came back to Georgia
for trial.'
A. L.
Terber testified: 'I am a gunsmith in business in
Jacksonville. I surely have seen that gun before, and it
belongs to Myron Southerland. There is a peculiarity about
that gun. In the first place, it was a home made action and a
left-handed bolt. The barrel was made by P. O. Ackley in
Trinidad, Colorado, and I fired that gun and put this scope
on for him, this telescope. I also know that gun. There's
a scope missing. This is the scope, a 2 1/2 K. Weaver and a
Stith mount. It's Myron Southerland's gun also.'
The
defendant offered no evidence, but made a statement in which
he set out his becoming acquainted with the deceased, and
that 'we were the best of friends.' According to his
statement, on Sunday, July 13, 1947, the deceased asked him
if he 'wouldn't go out with him...
