Agar v. State

94 N.E. 819, 176 Ind. 234, 1911 Ind. LEXIS 114
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedApril 20, 1911
DocketNo. 21,636
StatusPublished
Cited by48 cases

This text of 94 N.E. 819 (Agar v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Agar v. State, 94 N.E. 819, 176 Ind. 234, 1911 Ind. LEXIS 114 (Ind. 1911).

Opinion

Monks, J.

Appellant was convicted under §2285 Burns 1908, Acts 1905 p. 584, §392, of the crime of embezzlement. The assignment of errors calls in question the action of the court in overruling the motion to quash the indictment and the motion for a new trial. The indictment was in one count.

1. Appellant’s first contention is that the following language in the indictment does not constitute a direct averment of any matter contained in it, and is not only merely a recital, but in some of its parts constitutes recitals within the general recital: “Being then and there the agent, clerk, servant and employe of the Central Trust and Savings Company of Evansville, Indiana, a corporation organized and doing business under the laws of the State of Indiana, and having then and there, by virtue of said em[237]*237ployment as such agent, clerk, servant and employe, the control and possession of one bank cheek executed by C. O. Baltzell, in the sum of $515.20, dated August 15, 1906, drawn on the Citizen? Bank, of Princeton, Indiana, and payable to the order of Henry E. Agar, secretary, which check was then and there the property of said trust company, and of the value of $515.20, to the possession and ownership of which said check said trust company was then and there entitled. ’ ’

The contention of appellant rests on the ground that “the statements following the words ‘being' and ‘having’ in «aid indictment are mere recitals, and must be disregarded. ’ ’ If what follows said words “being” and “having” must be disregarded, it is evident that the court erred in overruling the motion to quash.

It has been held in many cases, however, that the allegation that “A, being an officer,” etc., or “being an employe,” etc., is a sufficient averment that he is an officer or employe.

In the ease of Rex v. Somerton (1827), 7 B. & C. 463, 14 Eng. Com. Law 210, the indictment charged that defendant, “being the servant of Joseph Hellier, on the same day, etc., feloniously did steal one gold ring then and there being in the possession of said Hellier, and being his goods and chat-ties.” This indictment was held good. The court said: “It is impossible that any person who reads this indictment can doubt that it imports that Mary Somerton was the servant of Hellier when she stole the property. 'I agree that we cannot by intendment or argument supply any thing which goes to constitute the guilt of the prisoner, or which may warrant a specific punishment in any particular case; but we must read and understand the language used in indictments as the rest of mankind would understand the same language, if used in other instruments, with the exception of those cases where the law requires technical terms to be used, as in the case of murder. If we were to hold that the allegation that on such a day the prisoner, being the [238]*238servant of J. Hellier, did on the same day steal the goods of J. Hellier, did not import that she stole his goods at the time when she was his servant, we would expose ourselves to that reproof expressed by a very learned and very humane judge, viz., that it is a disgrace to the law, that criminals should be allowed to escape by nice and captious objections of form.”

In the case of Rex v. Bootie (1759), 2 Burr. 864, the indictment, alleging that the defendant, being one of the constables, etc., and being in the execution of his said office did wilfully and unlawfully suffer Margaret Prince, being a loose, idle, lewd and disorderly person, to escape his custody, was held good.

In the case of Rex v. Lawley (1731), 2 Stra. *904, an indictment charging that the defendant, “knowing that Crookes had been indicted, and was to be tried,” attempted to persuade a witness not to appear, was held sufficient.

In the ease of King v. Moor (1688), 2 Mod. *128, the information charging “that the defendant, being above the age of fourteen years, did take a young maid away unmarried,” was held good.

In the case of Rex v. Royall (1759), 2 Burr. 832, 834, the indictment charged that Mawby, “being then and there the surveyor of the highways did,” etc. It was held that “ ‘being’ is a sufficient averment.”

In the case of Rex v. Ward (1727), 2 Ld. Raym. 1461, 1466, 1468, an indictment charging that the defendant, “onerabilis existens ad deliberandum 315 tons of alum to the Duke o£ Buckingham, ad cerium dies jam praeteriium, he, said defendant, contriving and intending said Duke of said alum to defraud, etc., forged the indorsement,” was held good. See, also, Rex v. Aylett (1785), 1 T. R. 63.

In the case of People v. Hatch (1910), 13 Cal. App. 521, 109 Pac. 1097, 1100, 1101, it was urged that “the fact that the defendant was the agent, attorney and trustee of Mrs. Sage, and that he had possession of and was intrusted with [239]*239her money as such agent, attorney and trustee, is not alleged in direct and positive terms, hut only in the participial form. ’ ’ The part of the indictment was that the defendant, "being then and there the agent, attorney, and trustee of one Sarah E. Sage, and being then and there intrusted with and having in his control and custody * * * as such attorney, agent, and trustee, ’ ’ etc. The court held that the use of the participial form of averment did not render the indictment defective.

In the ease of State v. Scoggins (1907), 85 Ark. 43, 47, 106 S. W. 969, the indictment charged that the defendant, "being the agent of the * * * and having then and there in his custody and possession as such agent, as aforesaid, * * * did,” etc. This is substantially the same as the charge in the case before us, and the court held that it sufficiently charged that the defendant was the agent, and that he had possession of the funds alleged to have been embezzled by virtue of his employment as agent.

In the case of State v. Manley (1891), 107 Mo. 364, 17 S. W. 800, it was held that an indictment charging "-that James Manley, * * * then and there being an officer duly elected by virtue of the law of the State of Missouri, to wit, a constable,” sufficiently avers that defendant was an officer.

In the ease of State v. Fogerson (1860), 29 Mo. 416, an indictment which charged that the defendant did disturb the peace "by then and there cursing and swearing, and by loud and abusive and indecent language,” was held good.

In the case of State v. Bloor (1898), 20 Mont. 574, 52 Pac. 611, it was said that "a material averment may sometimes be introduced with as much clearness and certainty by means of the participial clause, commenced by the word ‘being,’ as in the form of a direct proposition of a declarative sentence.”

In the case of Commonwealth v. Creed (1857), 74 Mass. 387, an indictment charging the defendant with "then and there being armed with a dangerous weapon, to wit, a gun, [240]*240* * * an assault did make * * * by * * * discharging said gun at said Quinn, and * * * beating, bruising and wounding the said Quinn with said gun,” was held good.

In the ease of State v. Boncher (1884), 59 Wis. 477, 18 N. W. 335, where the indictment charged that the persons therein named, to whom the defendant sold liquors, “who being minors,” it was held sufficient.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Logan v. State
1972 OK CR 38 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma, 1972)
Nicholas v. State
165 N.E.2d 149 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1960)
Budkiewicz v. Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway Co.
150 N.E.2d 897 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1958)
Kelley v. State
110 N.E.2d 860 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1953)
State v. Hoffman
229 P.2d 768 (Supreme Court of Kansas, 1951)
State v. Reichert
78 N.E.2d 785 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1948)
Romary v. State
64 N.E.2d 22 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1945)
Lee v. United States
40 A.2d 250 (District of Columbia Court of Appeals, 1944)
Edwards v. State
44 N.E.2d 304 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1942)
Kops v. State
42 N.E.2d 58 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1942)
Sheets v. State
30 N.E.2d 309 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1940)
State v. Cocklin
194 A. 378 (Supreme Court of Vermont, 1938)
Maddox v. State
12 N.E.2d 947 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1938)
Switzer v. State
8 N.E.2d 80 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1937)
Kennedy v. State
196 N.E. 316 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1935)
Whitney v. State
188 N.E. 779 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1934)
Illinois Pipe Line Co. v. Coffman
188 N.E. 217 (Indiana Court of Appeals, 1933)
McNamara v. State
181 N.E. 512 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1932)
Kraft v. State
171 N.E. 1 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1930)
Greer v. State
168 N.E. 458 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1929)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
94 N.E. 819, 176 Ind. 234, 1911 Ind. LEXIS 114, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/agar-v-state-ind-1911.