Lawrence Allison Hobart v. United States

Appellant was convicted of bank robbery in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2113 (a) and (d), which provide:

The indictment charged that one Pependrea and appellant “by force and violence, knowingly and wilfully took from Mrs. Carol Davis, teller, $1,474, belonging to” a bank; and that in committing the offense the defendant “assaulted and put in jeopardy the life of Mrs. Carol Davis by the use of * * * a dangerous weapon * * *.”

Appellant and Pependrea were tried together. Pependrea was found guilty. The jury failed to agree as to appellant, who was subsequently retried, found guilty, and sentenced to ten years.

At each trial there was submitted to the jury a special interrogatory as to whether Pependrea “put in jeopardy the life of any person by the use of a dangerous weapon.” In the first trial, when appellant and Pependrea were tried together, this interrogatory was answered in the negative. In the second trial, when appellant was tried alone, it was answered in the affirmative. At the second trial the jury also found specially that appellant knew or had reason to believe that Pependrea “was armed with a dangerous weapon.”

Appellant contends that (1) the evidence was insufficient…