People v. Dorrance

KNIGHT, J.

—The appellants, Seeundino Dorrance and Alonzo Dorrance, were found guilty by a jury of the crime of first degree robbery.

The victim of the robbery was Ernest Neil, a sailor of the United States Navy, stationed at Treasure Island; and the robbery was committed shortly before midnight on July 29, 1943, in the rear of a parking lot, a short distance from a saloon known as George’s Cave, on Eddy Street between Leavenworth and Jones Streets, in San Francisco. Neil was knocked down by blows on the head inflicted with Coca Cola bottles, and then beaten with the bottles about the head so severely that he was confined in bed in a hospital for five days and required two blood transfusions. He suffered a severe gash on the head, a broken nose, and blackened eyes, and his fingers were smashed when he tried to protect himself by putting his hands on his head. While he was thus being beaten his wallet containing $40 was stolen from his back pocket.

Earlier that evening Neil visited the saloon with another sailor, and they picked up an acquaintanceship with two

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women, Ila Hain, aged nineteen years, and a Mrs. Villela. The women were acquainted with appellants, and had met them earlier that day in a saloon near the waterfront, and tried to borrow some money from appellants. Appellants promised to meet them that evening at George’s Cave and let them have the money. After the sailors met the women in George’s Cave they drank with and talked to them for some time, and during that time the appellants were standing at the other end of the bar. The sailors asked the women to go to a room with them. One of the women said it would be all right, that she was going to get a quart of whiskey and take the sailors to a room. Both women went out, but Ila Hain returned alone in about fifteen minutes. The other woman had given Ila Hain a note saying for them to go to a hotel room and she would meet them there. Ila Hain told the sailors she had promised to buy appellants a drink, so they gave her a dollar and she went down to the other end of the bar and talked with appellants and gave them the dollar. Appellants asked her if Neil had any money, and she replied, “I guess so, he is buying my drinks.” Thereupon appellants told her to get Neil outside and “we will take care of that.” She and Neil left George’s Cave about ten minutes to twelve, and were followed out by appellants. She led Neil through a parking lot to the back fence. There was a board off the fence, and as she started to go through the fence she pretended that she had caught her