Appellant Ruetz was convicted of first-degree murder by a jury in the LaGrange Circuit Court on May 26, 1971. He was sentenced to life imprisonment. He brings this direct appeal, the consideration of which has been impeded by numerous difficulties, including the accidental loss of most of the record of the trial. Cf. Ruetz v. LaGrange Circuit Court, (1972) 258 Ind. 354, 281 N.E.2d 106; Ruetz v. Lash, (7th Cir. 1974) 500 F.2d 1225. The crime in question is the murder of Thomas Schultz, the owner of a South Bend laundry, in July of 1971.
