Love v. State

1947 OK CR 75, 182 P.2d 793, 84 Okla. Crim. 385, 1947 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 240
Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma·Decided June 25, 1947·No. No. A-10681.·Published·Cited by 4 cases

Opinion

JONES, J.

The defendant, Ray Leroy Love, was charged by information filed in the court of common pleas of Oklahoma county with the offense of unlawful possession of intoxicating liquor, was tried, convicted, with the punishment left to the court. The defendant was subsequently sentenced to serve 30 days in the county jail and pay a fine of f 150, and has appealed.

For a reversal of this case, two propositions are presented :

First, the search and seizure was illegal and unlawful because the search warrant did not describe with sufficient certainty the place to be searched.

Second, the court erred in allowing evidence to be admitted on rebuttal impeaching the character of the defendant by a showing of prior convictions of crime where the defendant had not taken the stand in his own defense and had not placed his character in issue.

In connection with the first proposition, it is contended that the search warrant described the place to be *387 searched as: “A one story frame building known as the ‘Casa Loma Domino and Pool Building’ located at 1334 Southeast 29th Street, adjacent to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Township, Oklahoma,” and, that this building described in the warrant covered the public property of one individual in the front of said building while the defendant and his wife were merely tenants who occupied the rear three rooms of said building.

We have carefully examined the record in connection with this issue. The testimony of the officers who made the raid was clear and convincing, while that of the defendant given on the motion to suppress evidence and his alleged wife was full of inconsistencies and misstatements. Under the testimony of the officers, the defendant was operating the pool and domino parlor and evidently selling whisky, as they found 21 pints of whisky in a refrigerator at his place of business. There were three rooms to the rear of the pool hall, but under the evidence of the officer, they were not being used as living quarters by the defendant or anyone else. Under the evidence presented by the state in connection with the hearing on the motion to suppress evidence, and especially when considered with the inconsistent testimony presented on behalf of defendant, the court was not only justified, but it was his duty, to overrule the motion to suppress evidence.

In Hughes v. State, 83 Okla. Cr. 16, 172 P. 2d 435, 436, it is stated:

“If the descriptions in search warrant are sufficient to enable officer executing the search warrant to locate the premises to be searched without aid of any other information save that contained in warrant, the warrant is sufficient.”
*388 “In bearing on motion to suppress evidence, court’s finding on disputed question of fact as to whether search warrant sufficiently described defendant’s premises will be sustained where there is competent evidence in record to support finding.”

See, also, McNew v. State, 44 Okla. Cr. 129, 279 P. 978.

The second proposition presented in defendant’s brief is directed at the admission of certain evidence by the state in rebuttal.

The defendant did not testify at the trial of case before the jury. However, his wife testified that the whis-ky that was found in the icebox was purchased by her husband for treatment of her chronic anemia and that it was not for sale but was for her own personal use.

In direct examination of the witness she testified:

“Q. Do you know of your husband selling any whisky? A. He never did sell any, sir. Q. After the officers found this whisky here, did they ever come back out to the place there? A. Yes; a number of times. Q. Did they ever find any liquor when they came back? A. No, sir. Q. Does your husband have a wholesale or retail liquor stamp that the federal government provides that all men in the whisky business must have? A. Well, no; he didn’t have any of those things. Q. He doesn’t have a wholesale or retail liquor stamp furnished by the federal government? A. No.”

On cross-examination she testified:

“Q. Do you know of your husband having been arrested before this time for possession of whisky? A. No, sir. Mr. Swimmer: Objected to as incompetent, irrelevant and immaterial. The Court: Overruled. Q. I beg your pardon? A. No; I didn’t know he was arrested. Q. You don’t know of him ever having been arrested *389 prior to tbis time? A. No, sir. Q. Do you know of Mm having been arrested for anything besides selling intoxicating liquor? A. No. Mr. Swimmer: Objected to as incompetent, irrelevant and immaterial. I didn’t understand the question. Q. Do you know what a retail liquor dealer’s stamp looks like, Mrs. Love? A. I don’t think I would.”

After the defense had rested their case, Deputy Sheriff Kolb was recalled as a witness by the state and the record discloses the following occurrences:

“Q. I hand you an instrument that has been marked Plaintiff’s Exhibit 2, and ask you if you can state what that is. Mr. Swimmer: Your Honor, if this instrument offered is what counsel believes, it is affecting the character and general reputation of this defendant, and we are objecting to it on the grounds that the man’s character has not been put in issue. Mr. Highley: Your Honor, his character has been put in issue by the witness who testified here that this man had never been arrested before that she knew of, and that she had been married to him since 1936. Mr. Swimmer: That was brought out on cross-examination and not direct examination, and it is palpably an attempt of the county attorney to bring the character and reputation of the defendant in issue and then take advantage of that fact. The Court: I believe I will let him answer. Overrule the objection, and allow exceptions. A. This instrument is a Federal Bureau of Investigation, United States Department of Justice, Washington, D. C., record. Q. Is that a record of the defendant in this case, Bay Leroy Love? A. Yes, sir. Q. Is it a criminal record compiled by that department? A. Yes, sir; by the Department of Justice. Mr. Swimmer: We object to these questions and move for a mistrial on the ground that this testimony is being brought before the jury for the purpose of influencing and biasing the jury, and for the further ground that the character of the defendant has not been put in issue by the defense. The Court: Well, some of it could be gone into for the purpose of impeaching the witness, for im *390 peachment only. Mr. Swimmer: Will you rule on that, your Honor? The Court: Overruled. Mr. Swimmer: Exception. ,Q. (By Mr. Highley) From an examination of page number 2 of the instrument that is identified as Plaintiffs Exhibit 2 — (interrupted). Mr. Swimmer: We object to any further questioning concerning the identity of this instrument. It hasn’t been offered in evidence, to my knowledge, and if the man wants to offer it into evi-deuce he may do so, over my objection. Mr. Highley: I don’t think it is necessary to offer it. It is a record of the Federal Bureau of Identification and has been sufficiently identified. Mr. Swimmer: We object to that evidence being introduced in the record.

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Love v. State, 1947 OK CR 75, 182 P.2d 793, 84 Okla. Crim. 385, 1947 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 240 (Okla. Ct. App. 1947).

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