DEATH WHILE COMMITTING CRIME   485

action upon a life insurance policy held by the person executed, in the absence of a stipulation exempting the company from liability for a death from this cause. * * *

Reversed and remanded, with directions.74

(f) DEATH OF INSURED WI-IILE COMMITTING CRIME.

PRUDENTIAL INS. CO. v. HALEY.
Appellate Court of Illinois, First District, 1900. 91 Ill. App. 363.

This suit was brought by appellee against appellant, an insurance company, to recover an amount claimed upon a policy of insurance issued by appellant upon the life of one George M. Haley. Haley was killed by a pistol shot fired at him by a police officer of the city of Chicago. A few minutes before the shooting Haley, together with one King, had robbed a man upon the public street. After the robbery Haley and King proceeded along the street and Britton, the victim of the robbery, followed them, keeping them in view until he found an officer. Upon finding an officer he complained of the robbery and pointed out Haley and King, still within his sight, as the robbers. The officer and Britton proceeded to intercept them. There is a conflict in the evidence as to whether the officer actually placed his hands upon Haley as well as upon King in arresting them. It appears that while holding King, and, as some of the witnesses testify, Haley as well, and while Britton had gone to secure the aid of another officer, Haley undertook to run away. The officer called to him to halt, and then, after firing into the ground twice, fired the shot which killed Haley.

The policy of insurance contained a provision that if the insured should die in consequence of his own criminal action within three

14 See notes on this case (1908) 6 Mich. L. Rev. 489 and (1908) 21 Harv. L. Rev. 530, 531, where it is said: "The argument that an express stipulation to in-sure against death at the hands of justice is against public policy as tending to encourage crime is unanswerable. Nor should it make a difference that the stipulation is embodied in a wider contract of indemnity. Probably no court would hold valid an accident policy insuring a robber against injury while plying his trade." See also the comment (1908) U. of Pa. L. Rev. 353.

Accord : American Nat. Ins. Co. v. Coates (1923) 112 Tex. 267, 246 S. W. 356, Comments (1923) 1 Tex. L. Rev. 352, 23 Colum. L. Rev. 591; Weeks v. New York Life Ins. Co. (1924) 128 S. Car. 223, 122 S. E. 586, 35 A. L. R. 1482; Fields v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co. (1923) 147 Tenn. 464, 249 S. W. 798, 36 A. L. R. 1250.

For further discussions of the problem, see the following, some of which discuss both suicide and death by legal execution: Thomas, F. F., Public Policy as Affecting Rights Accruing to a Party as a Result of Wrongful Acts (1913) 1 Calif. L. Rev. 513; Note (1922) 7 Minn. L. Rev. 45; Richards, Geo., Insurance, Suicide and Execution for Crime (1913) 22 Yale L. J. 292; Summers, W. L., Legal Execution of the Insured as a Defense to an Action on a Life Insurance Policy (1919) 7 Ky. L. J. (No. 2) 1.