Roscoe P. Conkling

This case involved an insurance company's attempt to intervene in a pending personal injury lawsuit filed by E.G. Jones against Clyde Tucker in Missouri circuit court, seeking to add a declaratory judgment claim on whether its garage liability policy covered Tucker and required it to provide a defense. The trial judge denied the motion to intervene, prompting the insurer to seek a writ of mandamus from the Missouri Supreme Court to compel intervention as of right under the civil procedure code. The court held that intervention was not required, reasoning that the insurer lacked a direct interest in the outcome of the tort action because its insured was not a party, no coverage dispute existed with the insured, and any coverage issues with Tucker could be resolved in a separate proceeding without binding the insurer to the personal injury judgment. The court distinguished prior precedent allowing intervention and discharged the alternative writ of mandamus as improvidently issued, also discharging a related preliminary rule in prohibition.

proceduretorts & liability

The case involved Harold Becker's conviction under Missouri Revised Statutes Section 563.280 for possessing with intent to sell or circulate two nudist magazines containing photographs of nude men, women, and children with private parts depicted. Becker appealed, arguing that the evidence was insufficient to show the publications were obscene, that the statute was unconstitutionally vague and indefinite, and that it violated free speech protections. The court affirmed the conviction, holding that the publications met the legal test for obscenity by tending to deprave morals through incitement of lascivious thoughts, that the statute provided an ascertainable standard of guilt, and that free speech rights do not extend to obscene materials under established precedent.

criminal lawfree speech

The case involved Nellie S. Collins appealing her removal from Missouri's old age assistance rolls after the Division of Welfare determined, following a reinvestigation and household budget, that family income of $255.47 per month exceeded necessary expenses of $218.89. The Director of the State Department of Public Health and Welfare affirmed the removal after a hearing, finding sufficient household resources to meet needs, and the circuit court upheld that order. The Missouri Supreme Court affirmed, concluding that substantial evidence supported the Director's factual findings on income and eligibility. The court limited its review to whether the administrative decision was supported by substantial evidence rather than conducting a new evaluation of the facts.

healthcareprocedure

This case involved a habeas corpus petition filed by Harold J. Arrington challenging his detention in Missouri for extradition to Idaho on a 1942 first-degree burglary conviction from which he had escaped. The petitioner argued that Idaho's extradition demand was invalid because it did not allege in writing that he was present in Idaho at the time of the crime and later fled, as required by Missouri's Uniform Criminal Extradition Act. The court discharged the writ and ordered Arrington remanded to the sheriff for delivery to Idaho authorities. The core reasoning was that the federal extradition statute (18 U.S.C.A. § 3182) governs this area of extradition, does not require the written allegation at issue, and preempts the conflicting Missouri statute, while the governor's rendition warrant satisfied federal requirements and was prima facie valid.

criminal lawfederal power

Bertha Harris sued the St. Louis Public Service Company for personal injuries sustained while boarding a bus, when the operator closed the doors on her and then abruptly stopped, throwing her backward onto the sidewalk and fracturing her right wrist. The jury returned a $13,500 verdict for the plaintiff, which the trial court upheld after denying the defendant's motion for a new trial. On appeal, the court found no reversible error in the trial court's rulings on closing argument about an absent physician witness or in the jury instructions. The court concluded that the verdict was excessive by $3,500 in light of the plaintiff's age, prior wrist injury, medical costs, and permanent disabilities, and ordered a remittitur reducing the judgment to $10,000 or a new trial.

torts & liabilityprocedure

The case involved a wrongful death lawsuit brought by Martha Naomi Lohmann against Wabash Railroad Company and J.E. and Claudia Latta after her husband was killed when his southbound truck was struck by an eastbound train at the Eva Avenue grade crossing in St. Louis County, Missouri. The jury returned a $15,000 verdict for the plaintiff, but the trial court set it aside and entered judgment for the defendants in accordance with their motions for a directed verdict. The court affirmed that ruling on appeal, holding that the decedent was negligent as a matter of law because he failed to look for the approaching train, which he could have seen in time to stop if he had done so, despite the presence of a grease shack on the right-of-way. The court reasoned that the shack did not obstruct the decedent's view to the point of rendering the crossing unusually hazardous in a way that excused his duty to look, making his own negligence the proximate cause of the accident rather than any failure by the defendants to provide additional warnings.

torts & liabilityprocedure

This case involved Gladys M. Hogane seeking a decree of equitable adoption as the daughter of her deceased stepfather, Erich W. Ottersbach, to claim a share of his estate, despite no formal adoption ever occurring. The circuit court dismissed her petition at the close of her evidence, and the appellate court affirmed that decision. The court reasoned that while Hogane lived in Ottersbach's home and was treated well, the evidence did not sufficiently establish an agreement to adopt or facts compelling equitable adoption, as it was consistent with a mere stepfather-stepdaughter relationship under precedents like Capps v. Adamson.

family lawproperty

The case involved Robert Childers, who was convicted by a jury of molesting a ten-year-old female minor in violation of Section 563.160 RSMo 1949 and sentenced to thirty days in jail plus a $300 fine. On appeal, Childers challenged the sufficiency of the evidence, a juror's qualifications, the absence of women on the jury, an improper question and argument by the prosecutor, and an allegedly erroneous jury instruction. The court affirmed the conviction, holding that the victim's testimony provided substantial evidence of the offense, that claims regarding the juror were not preserved in the record, and that the instruction was proper because the defense was a general denial rather than an alibi tied to a specific date.

criminal lawprocedure

This case involved a breach of contract claim by Adair County against contractor William Urban and his surety for damages arising from the construction of a bridge across the Chariton River. After two trials resulting in verdicts for the county of $5,000 and then $4,000, the trial court on its own motion set aside the second verdict and judgment under Section 510.370, citing lack of jurisdiction due to the defendants' motion for change of venue. The defendants appealed that order, arguing among other points that the venue motion did not divest jurisdiction and that the order was void for lack of notice. The Missouri Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, holding that the defendants were not "aggrieved" by the order within the meaning of the appeal statute because it eliminated their immediate liability without a final adverse determination.

procedure

This case involved a dispute over enforcement of a Colorado probate court judgment against the Missouri estate of Charles H. Parker, who had been appointed administrator of Sarah A. Parker's Colorado estate but left the state without accounting for assets or paying legacies. The Colorado court revoked his letters, appointed plaintiff Shearer as successor administrator, and entered a $13,902.06 judgment against Parker for converted assets plus interest. The Missouri circuit court reversed the probate court's allowance of that judgment as a claim, but the Missouri Supreme Court reversed, holding that the Colorado judgment was entitled to full faith and credit because the proceedings were in rem as to the estate assets and the Colorado court had jurisdiction over both the subject matter and Parker's person. The court reasoned that a valid foreign judgment cannot be collaterally attacked on the merits in Missouri and that principles against unjust enrichment supported enforcement.

procedureproperty

In Hall v. Brookshire, plaintiff Roger Hall sued defendant W.A. Brookshire for libel after Brookshire sent a letter to Hall's mother accusing Hall of committing perjury during court testimony in Callaway County, Missouri; Hall won an $8,000 judgment at trial. The trial court granted Brookshire's motion for a new trial (while denying his motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict) without stating its reasons, prompting cross-appeals. The Missouri Supreme Court affirmed the new-trial order, holding that the jury had been improperly instructed to require the defendant to prove the truth of the alleged libel (justification) beyond a reasonable doubt rather than by a preponderance of the evidence, which was reversible error under Missouri law.

torts & liabilityprocedure

The case involved Vernon John Wood's appeal from his conviction in Macon County Circuit Court for tampering with a motor vehicle under Missouri law, after a jury found he had removed items including gasoline and a license plate from Paul White's parked 1937 Buick without permission. The court affirmed the judgment sentencing Wood to six months in jail and a $75 fine. It ruled that the information properly charged a crime, the evidence of Wood's actions was sufficient to support the verdict, and there were no errors in the admission of testimony or the jury instructions regarding the definition of tampering. The opinion noted that removal of parts from a vehicle constitutes tampering and that the trial court correctly submitted factual questions to the jury while resolving legal issues itself.

criminal lawprocedure

The case involved Orville Lee Ridinger, who was charged with feloniously tampering with a motor vehicle by removing a tire and wheel from a 1937 Chevrolet bus without the owner's permission, in violation of Section 560.175 RSMo 1949. The circuit court found him guilty after a bench trial and sentenced him to six months in jail. On appeal, the Missouri Supreme Court affirmed the judgment, holding that the information sufficiently charged the offense, that the bus qualified as a motor vehicle under the statute despite being inoperable and unlicensed, and that removing the wheel and tire constituted tampering rather than being exclusively covered by larceny statutes.

criminal law

The case involved Cecil Blanford's suit against the St. Louis Public Service Company for damages due to loss of his wife's services after she was allegedly injured while alighting from one of the company's buses in 1945. The matter had been tried multiple times, with the most recent jury returning a verdict for the defendant; the trial court then granted the plaintiff's motion for a new trial without stating its reasons. On appeal, the Missouri Supreme Court held that the plaintiff failed to meet the burden of showing reversible error, finding that neither alleged misconduct by defense counsel during argument nor the giving of defendant's Instruction No. 9 on surmise and speculation warranted setting aside the verdict. The court concluded that the parties had received a fair trial free from prejudicial error affecting the merits. It therefore reversed the order granting a new trial and remanded with directions to enter judgment for the defendant.

torts & liabilityprocedure

The case concerned a declaratory judgment action by a St. Louis resident, taxpayer, and voter challenging the Board of Election Commissioners' 1952 division of the city into seven state senatorial districts after the 1950 census, on grounds that the districts violated Article III, Section 8 of the Missouri Constitution by failing to be contiguous, compact, and nearly equal in population. The plaintiff sought declarations that he could run and vote for state senator at large under related statutes because the districting was void. The court affirmed dismissal of Count I as moot, since the November 1952 election had taken place, senators had been seated, and the plaintiff conceded he did not contest their titles. It reversed dismissal of Count II, holding that the circuit court had jurisdiction over the voting rights claim and that the plaintiff had standing to challenge the districts' constitutionality, while affirming dismissal of the City of St. Louis as a party with no justiciable interest.

elections

In this 1954 Missouri case, Anheuser-Busch sought a permanent injunction against picketing by members of the International Association of Machinists District No. 9 at its St. Louis brewery. The union had no direct dispute with the company's own 220 machinist employees but picketed to pressure Anheuser-Busch over its practice of contracting new construction and expansion work to independent contractors whose employees were represented by the Millwrights Union, an affiliate of the Carpenters. The trial court granted the injunction, and the Missouri Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the picketing furthered an unlawful conspiracy in restraint of trade under state law (RSMo § 416.010) because there was no labor dispute or unfair labor practice under the National Labor Relations Act, leaving the matter outside federal jurisdiction and subject to state antitrust prohibitions on secondary pressure against neutral employers.

labor & employmentbusiness & regulatory

This case involved a dispute over title to real property in St. Louis that was sold at a tax sale in 1937 under the Jones-Munger Law for delinquent taxes totaling over $749, with the City of St. Louis purchasing it for $4.75. The plaintiffs, heirs of the original owners, sued to quiet title and invalidate the city's tax deed, claiming defects in the sale process including inadequate publication notice, improper property description, and grossly inadequate sale price. The court decided that the tax deed was void on its face and quieted title in the plaintiffs, reasoning that the collector failed to strictly follow statutory requirements and the unconscionably low price rendered the sale fraudulent and inherently void, so the statute of limitations did not apply.

propertytaxes

The case involved Raymond Ellis appealing the dismissal of his petition to set aside a 1951 divorce decree granted to his former wife Ruth Ellis on her cross-petition, alleging fraud by the parties and their attorneys in failing to properly verify the cross-petition under statute, not presenting the property settlement agreement to the court, and related procedural issues with the deed of trust and settlement payments. The trial court dismissed the action after reviewing the full record of the prior divorce proceeding, finding no basis to void the decree or related agreements. The appellate court affirmed, holding that the original court retained jurisdiction despite the amended prayer, the judgment was regular on its face with all parties present and represented, and no extrinsic fraud existed to warrant setting it aside under principles limiting equitable relief in such cases.

family lawprocedure

The case involved William Phillip Rohman, who was employed at Biederman Furniture Company and was accused of stealing merchandise such as televisions, gas ranges, and furniture by creating unauthorized pull tickets to remove items from the warehouse and collaborating with a truck driver to sell or store them. A jury convicted Rohman of grand larceny, and based on his prior felony conviction, sentenced him to five years in prison. On appeal, the Missouri Supreme Court reviewed the defendant's assignments of error from his motion for a new trial, including challenges to the sufficiency of evidence, jury instructions, and trial conduct, but found no reversible errors in the record and affirmed the conviction and sentence.

criminal lawprocedure

The case involved defendant John Henry Smith, who was convicted by a jury of second-degree murder and sentenced to 35 years in prison for shooting and killing neighbor Mattie Bowen on Thanksgiving Day in 1950 after an argument over children throwing snowballs. The Missouri Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, ruling that the state's evidence was sufficient to support a finding of second-degree murder rather than manslaughter or justifiable homicide in defense of habitation, as the victim was shot while walking away from the defendant's steps into a gangway. The court found the testimony of three young girls consistent with the physical evidence of the bullet wounds and rejected challenges to the jury instructions on murder, manslaughter, and self-defense, noting that some objections were not properly preserved in the motion for new trial.

criminal law