State Missouri v. Michael David Manis

Defendant was jury-convicted of having committed the class A felony of robbery in the first degree at a PayRite Pharmacy in Springfield near 9 a.m., May 3, 1979. § 569.020. 1 It assessed punishment ""at 30 years."" Thereafter the court having found, as additionally charged; that defendant had been previously convicted of a class A felony, i.e., robbery in the first degree which occurred March 1, 1977, and that he was a ""dangerous offender"" as defined in § 558.016-3(1), imposed a term of imprisonment for 30 years. §§ 558.011 and 557.036-3(2)(b). Defendant appealed. 2 The trial testimony of the state's witnesses, and that of the defendant himself, was brief and undisputed. At the time of the robbery, four employees and a salesman were on the pharmacy premises when two unmasked robbers entered the store. Defendant was armed with a drawn pistol or revolver which he brandished from close range at the rightful occupants. The other robber had a sack which the robbers demanded to be filled with ""all your Class A, B & C drugs."" Defendant did not orally ""threaten to hurt anybody,"" but did admit to saying something on the order of ""don't move and nobody will get hurt."" When the pharmacists on duty had filled the sack as directed, defendant ordered the employees and the salesman ""to lay down on the floor and we wouldn't get hurt."" This accomplished, the robbers departed. The entire episode consumed two minutes or less.