United States v. Charles S. Pheribo

Charles S. Pheribo and five accomplices were indicted for stealing and conspiring to steal merchandise from a truck traveling in interstate commerce, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 659. Four of the defendants entered guilty pleas to one or more of the indictment’s four counts, but Pheribo and another defendant, William Johnson, elected to stand trial. Based largely on the incriminating testimony of two accomplices, James Williams and James Lovejoy, the jury found Pheribo guilty of the three substantive counts, but returned a verdict of acquittal on the conspiracy count. 1 The conviction was…