United States v. Howard Jackson, Jr., United States of America v. Billy Joe Payne, United States of America v. Robert H. Willis

Howard Jackson, Jr., Billy Joe Payne and Robert H. Willis were jointly tried and convicted of bank robbery with a gun, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2113 (a)-(d). Their individual appeals have been consolidated. We affirm all three judgments.

At 11:45 a. m., on April 28, 1970, three masked Negroes robbed the Valley National Bank, Phoenix, Arizona, of over ten thousand dollars. Employees and customers testified that all three robbers wore stocking masks and at least some of them were armed. The three defendants were arrested and charged with this crime.

All three defendants filed motions to suppress various items of physical evidence. At the pretrial court hearing on these motions there was a confrontation between defendants and five Government eyewitnesses, in the absence of counsel, which provides the basis for defendants’ first argument on appeal.

The hearing on the motions to suppress was scheduled to begin at 9:30 a. m. on September 1, 1970. The eyewitnesses came to the courtroom about that time to participate in this hearing and took seats in the spectators’ section. The hearing, however, was delayed as the court had asked opposing counsel to first meet in an adjoining room…