People v. Blake

Facts

Schadt had had cataract surgery and her neighbor, Maloney would come to her house at about 7 p.m. each evening and spend the night. The two women went to bed at around 11 p.m., after locking the doors and securing the house. They slept in separate bedrooms on the second floor. At approximately 6 a.m. Schadt was awakened by a noise and saw a young man push open her bedroom door. At approximately the same time, Maloney, who had been awake, saw a different man in the hall. She heard one of the men say 'I'm going in and rough her up,' and the other man says 'I'm going on in her room and have some fun.' The man who entered Schadt's room fired a pistol and went through her dresser drawers. After a few minutes, the man left her room and ran downstairs. Schadt went to Maloney's room. The man in Maloney's room told Schadt to lie down and struck her in the face with a gun. Maloney was already lying on the bed since the same man had put the gun to her head. The victims remained in the room for about five minutes. The man who had been in Schadt's room returned to that room and ransacked it. He made several quick trips downstairs. At one point the women heard him yell to someone downstairs, referring to him by a number. The women also heard someone downstairs yell to the man upstairs. Police were dispatched to 613 Voris. Officer Whitledge arrived first. He saw that the back door had been broken into. He then saw two men appear at the back door. Whitledge drew his gun and yelled at them to stop, they slammed the door shut, remaining inside. Officer Adams saw a man jump through the window of the first-floor dining room and run from the house. Adams pursued the man. The man pointed a gun and fired a shot at Adams, Adams returned fire, killing the suspect. The deceased, later identified as Willie James Dixon, had a .22 caliber revolver in his hand. The gun had one spent round and five live rounds. Whitledge saw a man jump out of Schadt's bedroom window, onto the roof of the back porch, and then into a neighbor's yard. Whitledge apprehended the man, Anthony Dixon, nearby. Whitledge found a starter's pistol on the ground near where Anthony had landed. The gun would only fire blanks or caps. Schadt had bruised shoulders and an open wound on her face. The women could not identify the assailants or describe them in detail. A color television set, microwave oven, and clock were missing from the house. The officers searched the entire house, including the attic, but found no one. The police found the missing television, microwave oven, and clock in an alley a block away. There were two sets of footprints in the snow running from the items toward the general direction of Schadt's residence. One of the footprints matched a shoe worn by Willie Dixon. A latent thumbprint taken from the clock matched D's left thumbprint. Around 1:30 p.m. that day, Benne was inside Schadt's home when he heard a noise upstairs. Benne went to the attic, opened the lid of a cardboard barrel, and found D inside. Benne asked D who else was with him and where his gun was. D responded: 'My cousins Anthony and James. Man, I don't have no gun. Where's Anthony? Is he in the hospital?' D did not have a weapon. According to D's oral statement, D and the Dixons went for a walk. The three walked half an hour and came to 613 Voris. D knew that Schadt lived there but did not know whether anyone was home that morning. D went to the front of the house to act as a lookout. The Dixons went to the rear door of the house and forced the door. After remaining out front for 20 minutes, D went to the rear of the house and waited by a fence. Willie carried items from the house to D. When the police arrived a few minutes later, D ran inside the house to warn the Dixons. He then ran upstairs and hid in the attic. D denied having a gun at the house. He admitted having a cap gun earlier that night. D admitted that he and Willie had carried a television, microwave oven, and clock across the street from 613 Voris. D did not know whose idea the break-in had been. He had not discussed it with the Dixons. D claimed he was drunk and followed the lead of the Dixons. When the Dixons jumped over the backyard fence at 613 Voris D said that he was leaving and Willie pointed a gun at him and ordered him to climb over the fence. D complied and told Willie not to shoot him. When the Dixons went into the house D remained outside. D started to walk away when Willie came out of the house and, while holding the gun in his hand, told the defendant he could not leave. D then heard a woman scream inside the house. D told Willie he would do anything so long as the Dixons left the women alone and Willie did not point the gun at him. Willie told the defendant to stay outside. He also told D that if he found that D had left, he would go upstairs and start shooting. According to D, he agreed not to leave because he wanted to save himself and the women. Willie came back outside with a television set, a microwave oven, and a clock. Willie ordered D to help him carry the items. D balked, and Willie asked D if he wanted to see the women die. D said no and assisted Willie. D followed Willie to a nearby garage, where they left the items. Willie ordered D back to Schadt's home and inside because he did not trust D. Willie ordered D to act as a lookout and said that he would start shooting if he called down to D and received no response. D saw the police arrive and begin to inspect the house. Once D saw that the police had surrounded the house did D warn the Dixons, in an effort to get them away from the women. As the Dixons attempted to escape, D hid in the attic. He feared being shot if he revealed himself and had no idea how long he would remain in the attic. D claimed he was too afraid to tell the police the truth. He gave the police the information contained in the oral and written statements in order to get out of a holding cell. D was convicted and appealed. D had asked for instructions on compulsion and necessity and the court accepted the compulsion instruction but not necessity. The court modified the compulsion instruction to include the concept of threat against another person: 'It is a defense to the charges made against the defendant that he acted under the compulsion of threat or menace of the imminent infliction of death or great bodily harm if he reasonably believed death or great bodily harm would be inflicted upon himself or another if he did not perform the conduct with which he is charged.'

Issues

Rule of Law

Holding and Decision

Legal Analysis

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