Blumenstiel v. State

230 S.W. 262, 148 Ark. 421, 1921 Ark. LEXIS 58
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedMay 2, 1921
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 230 S.W. 262 (Blumenstiel v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Blumenstiel v. State, 230 S.W. 262, 148 Ark. 421, 1921 Ark. LEXIS 58 (Ark. 1921).

Opinion

Smith, J.

This appeal is docketed and briefed here under the style of Blumensteil et al. v. State, for the reason that it bore that style in the court below, where Blumensteil, Wolf, Davis and Zoll were jointly tried and all convicted; but only Whdf-and Davis have appealed.

The indictment charges the maintenance of a common nuisance “in a certain building on Central Avenue in the city of Hot Springs, Arkansas, known as the Blum-ensteil & Wolf Cigar Store, for the purpose of permitting and encouraging divers idle and ill-disposed persons to resort thereto for the purpose of betting on various horse races run outside of the State of Arkansas, and at divers times permit and encourage various idle and ill-disposed persons' to resort thereto and bet money on horse races run outside of the State of Arkansas, and did thereby promote and encourage immorality, idleness and lawlessness, to the great injury and damage to the public morals and a common nuisance to the county of G-arland, against the peace and dignity of the State of Arkansas.”

The defendants were jointly tried, and at the trial Blumensteil and Wolf were called by the State as witnesses, and over the objection of the defendants were required to testify. In overruling this objection the court stated that he would instruct the jury that the testimony of Blumensteil could not be considered against him, and the testimony of Wolf could not be considered against him, and the jury was so instructed.

Over the objection of the defendants, witnesses were permitted to testify to bets on races placed with a man in charge of the rear end or back room of the cigar store, where such bets were accepted. But in admitting the testimony the court stated that a conviction could not be had on what occurred more than a year prior to the finding of the indictment, but that such testimony was admissible on the question of the connection of the parties with the subsequent occurrences in the building. We think the testimony as thus limited was competent for the purpose for which it was admitted.

There was testimony that within a year of the indictment bets were received, and that on one occasion the city commissioner, with the police, raided the place and found a large crowd of people there, who ran in every direction out of the front and the rear of the building, and when the crowd had dispersed, tickets were found scattered about the place which were used in betting on the horses, and posted on the wall of the room was a card showing the odds which were being offered on the different horses.

The police judge was permitted to testify about the conviction of a man named Powers, which had been secured in his court by the authorities, for betting on horse races, and in giving this testimony he was allowed to state that “the evidence tended to show that he (Powers) was seen around there on several occasions, and was making a book up there. ” It is argued, however, that a, proper exception was not saved to this testimony.

Appellants requested the court to give an instruction numbered 5. reading’ as follows-:

“If you'find the defendants guilty, you will assess their punishment at a fine of not exceeding one hundred dollars or imprisonment not exceeding three months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.”

This instruction was refused, and the jury was instructed that “the punishment provided by law for the offense charged is a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars and imprisonment not exceeding three months — that means anything up to one hundred dollars, and imprisonment for any time not exceeding three months.”

This instruction numbered 5 was asked by appellants after the court had refused to declare that sections 1432 and 1433, Crawford & Moses’ Digest, did not apply to the case made.

No attempt was made to show that any particular frequenter of the place was an idle or an ill-disposed person. On the contrary, appellants offered affirmative testimony that certain persons who were shown to have been in the room when bets were being received were not idle or ill-disposed persons; but this testimony was excluded by the court for the reason that the allegation of the indictment in that respect was an immaterial one; and an exception was saved to that ruling.

The verdict of the jury fixed the punishment of Wolf and Davis at a fine of one hundred dollars and imprisonment in the county jail for sixty days each; and from the judgment in accordance therewith is this appeal.

It is first insisted for the reversal of the judgment of conviction that sections 1432 and 1433, Crawford & Moses’ Digest, do not apply. The insistence is that if appellants are guilty at all they should have been punished pursuant to section 2669, Crawford & Moses ’ Digest, or under section 2632, Crawford & Moses’ Digest. Section 2669 makes it a misdemeanor to bet money or anything of value on any horse race, whether run in or out of this State. Section 2632 makes it a felony to operate a gambling house. It may be that appellants might have been convicted under either of these statutes; but that fact is -unimportant here, if they were also guilty under sections 1432 and 1433.

By section 1432 it is enacted that' “The common law of England, so far as the same is applicable and of a general nature, and all statutes of the British Parliament in aid of or to supply the defect of the common law, made prior to the fourth year of James the First (that are applicable to our form of government), of a general nature and not local to that Kingdom, and not inconsistent with the Constitution and laws of the United States, or the Constitution and laws of this State, shall be the rule of decision in this State unless altered or repealed by the G-eneral Assembly of this State.”

Section 1433 is as follows: “In cases of crimes and misdemeanors committed in this State, the punishment of which has not been provided for by statute, the court having jurisdiction thereof shall proceed to punish the offender under the provisions of the common or statute law of England put in force in this State by this act; but the punishment in such eases shall only be fine and imprisonment, and in such cases the finé shall not exceed one hundred dollars and the imprisonment shall not exceed three months.”

In the case of State v. Vaughan, 81 Ark. 117, which was a proceeding to enjoin the operation of a pool room, suc.h as appellants herein are shown to have been connected with, the court said: “The common law is put in force in this State, and the punishment for common-law offenses not covered by statute is fixed as a fine not exceeding $100 and imprisonment not to exceed three months. Kirby’s Digest, sections 623 and 624.

“These statutes have been held applicable to a gaming house as a common-law misdemeanor. Vanderworker v. State, 13 Ark. 700; Norton v. State, 15 Ark. 71; Thatcher v. State, 48 Ark. 60; 1 Bishop, Crim. Law, section 1137. Each period in which a nuisance continues is a separate offense. Wharton, Crim. Law, section 1419. ’ ’ Sections 623 and 624 of Kirby’s Digest are carried into Crawford & Moses’ Digest as sections 1432 and 1433.

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Related

State Ex Rel. Attorney General v. Karston
187 S.W.2d 327 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1945)
Allgood v. State
177 S.W.2d 928 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1944)
Morris v. State
264 S.W. 970 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1924)
Wolf v. State
238 S.W. 25 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 1922)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
230 S.W. 262, 148 Ark. 421, 1921 Ark. LEXIS 58, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/blumenstiel-v-state-ark-1921.