eBook details
- Title: State v. Richard Robert Mitchell
- Author : Supreme Court of Minnesota
- Release Date : January 05, 1964
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 63 KB
Description
This is an appeal from an order denying defendant's motion for a new trial following his conviction of murder in the third
degree. Defendant, together with one Jacob Joseph Smith and Richard Thomas McCarty, was charged by indictment with murder
in the third degree contrary to Minn. St. 1961, § 619.10. The indictment alleged that the act took place on August 12, 1959,
and that the victim, Gordon Knopic, died August 16, the result of an assault upon him in an attempted robbery. The material facts as they appear in the record are substantially the same as those stated in State v. Smith, 264 Minn. 307,
119 N.W.2d 838, which affirms the conviction of defendant Smith, who was tried separately. In summary, it is sufficient to
say that the defendant, Smith, McCarty, and one Lawrence Liebgott, who was indicted as an accessory after the fact, met at
Duane's Lounge bar in the evening of August 11, 1959, moved to another bar, and then came to Harry Unise's tavern shortly
before 11 p.m. While they were there, one of them observed the victim Knopic cashing a check. About 12:45 a.m., when Knopic
left the bar, he was followed by Smith. McCarty also left a few minutes later. Defendant had preceded them. It does not appear
that they followed a prearranged plan. As stated in the Smith case, Knopic went to the parking lot and, after he had entered
his automobile, Smith pulled him out and defendant joined in an assault upon him. In describing defendant's participation
in the offense, McCarty testified that after Knopic was on the ground, "Mr. Mitchell came running across Rice Street and joined
us in the parking lot. * * * He kicked the man in the head * * *. He kicked him like you kick a football." McCarty claims
he told Mitchell he "had better leave the fellow alone," that he was "going to kill him." Knopic died in the hospital a few
days later.