Miller v. Commonwealth

78 Ky. 15, 1879 Ky. LEXIS 51
CourtCourt of Appeals of Kentucky
DecidedJune 26, 1879
StatusPublished
Cited by30 cases

This text of 78 Ky. 15 (Miller v. Commonwealth) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Miller v. Commonwealth, 78 Ky. 15, 1879 Ky. LEXIS 51 (Ky. Ct. App. 1879).

Opinion

JUDGE COFER

delivered the opinion of the court.

The indictment accused the appellants of the crime of grand larceny, committed in manner and form as follows, to-wit: “The said Charles Miller and A. P. Smith, in the said county of Jefferson, on the 1st day of February, 1879, and before the finding of this indictment, feloniously did combine, confederate, and conspire to, and did feloniously steal, take, and carry away thirty-nine dollars and fifty cents in money, lawful currency of the United States, the property of Alfred Lyons, contrary to the form of the statute, in such cases made and provided, and against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.”

Without demurring to the indictment, the appellants consented that a formal arraignment might be dispensed with, and pleaded not guilty. They were found guilty and sentenced to be imprisoned in the penitentiary for two years, and prosecute this appeal to obtain a reversal of that judgment.

[17]*17The prosecutor, Lyons, testified that he was drunk, in a saloon in Fifth' street, in the city of Louisville; that he fell into conversation with the prisoner, A. P. Smith; that he and Smith left the saloon together, and, without witness knowing where he was going, Smith took him where the prisoner, Miller, was dealing “faro.” That Smith asked him (witness) for some money to bet on the game; that he gave Smith a ten dollar note, which he lost. That Smith then took from his pocket, without his consent, more money, 'which was bet and lost in the same way. That he knew nothing .of the game, never having seen it played but once before; that he could not tell when money was lost or when it was won.

Richardson testified that he was in the saloon in Fifth street when the prosecutor came in. That the prosecutor was drinking, and treating everybody around there, and had his money out. That the prosecutor asked some one to figure some for him, and was referred to Smith as a person capable of doing the figuring. That he and Smith figured awhile and then left the saloon and went to the faro bank kept by Miller. Witness followed them into the room •where the bank was, and the prosecutor gave Smith a ten dollar note at three different times; but he did not see Smith take any money from the prosecutor’s pocket. That Smith bet and lost all the money he got from the prosecutor, and the latter then left the room.

Richardson also stated that he knew the character of the game dealt by Miller, and that both he and Smith were partners of Miller; that the game was what is called a “brace” game, and-was so conducted that it was impossible for the better to win. That Miller and his accomplices. [18]*18knew exactly how to bet money so as to win or lose; that Smith knew which were to be the winning cards. That he (witness) and Smith were "ropers” for Miller’s game, and went out and induced whoever they could to go into the bank and bet, or let them bet, his money. They were not looking for Lyons; but he was brought in under the ■general understanding, and his money was won and after-wards divided out between Miller, Smith, witness, and one Forst, according to the share agreed upon between themselves.

He also stated, over the objection of the prisoners’ ■counsel, that he received his share from Forst some time after the money was won, and that Forst told him it was his share of the money won from Lyons, and that ■other persons had been roped into Miller’s bank by the •same parties, and defrauded of their money in the same way that Lyons was, and the money divided out, he, witness, receiving his share.

The Court instructed the jury, in substance, that if the prisoners feloniously conspired together to cheat Lyons ■out of his money, and, in pursuance of such conspiracy, -and for the purpose’ of so cheating him, did set up a game at which Lyons’ money was to be bet, and that it was understood between them that the money was to be bet by Smith in such way that it would be certainly won by Miller, and that it was so bet and won in accordance with the understanding between them, they were guilty as charged.

The rule as stated by Russell (2 Russell, 29) and approved by this Court is, that if, by trick or artifice, the owner of property is induced to part with the possession only, still meaning to retain the right of property, the [19]*19taking by such means will amount to larceny; but if the -owner part with not only the possession of the goods but the right of property in them also, the offense of the party obtaining them will not be larceny, but the' offense -of obtaining goods by false pretenses.

Applying this test to the case in hand, the first in-quiry is, did the prosecutor part with his right of property in the bills handed to Smith to be bet on the game being dealt by Miller.

It is contended that he did, first, because the statute •declares that money advanced or loaned at the time of betting, to be used in betting, cannot be recovered back, ■and second, that when the money was lost, the prosecutor went away without making any objection to its loss or ■any claim to it.

The money was delivered to Smith to be bet for the prosecutor, and there was certainly no intention on his part to -give up the money until it should be lost on the game. Until that occurred, he continued to be the owner of the money, and might have demanded its return. He had not ■loaned it to Smith or advanced it to him upon any contract, -express or implied, by which Smith became his debtor. The money was in Smith’s hands as a mere custodian or agent for the prosecutor. It continued to be the prosecutor’s money. -It was handed to Smith to be bet for him, and not for the use or benefit of Smith in any way. He no more parted with his property in the money than if, instead of ■going to a .faro bank and handing Smith the money to bet for him on the game, they had gone into an auction room and he had handed the money to Smith to make purchases for him. In this latter case no one will doubt but that, if the money had been obtained for the ostensible purpose sup[20]*20posed, but with the actual felonious intention not to use it for that purpose, but to convert it to his own use, he would have been guilty of larceny. (2 Russ., 42, et seq.)

If it was not the intention of the prosecutor, when he-handed the bills to Smith, to part with his property in them, but merely to part with the possession, for the purpose of having them betted on the game, and Smith received them, not for the purpose of betting bona fide, but. with the intent to lose them on a fraudulent game concerted between himself and Miller or between themselves and others, and did so bet and lose the money, Smith was guilty of larceny; and if Miller knew that Smith had obtained the money from the prosecutor to bet against the-bank, and, by preconcert between himself and Smith, Smith knew which cards would lose and which would win, and it had been agreed that he should bet on those they knew would lose, and this was done with the design to-deprive the prosecutor of his money, and he was so deprived of it, Miller is also guilty.

This view is supported by the case of Rex v. Horner (1 Leach, 270), cited in Russell (vol. 2, p.

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Bluebook (online)
78 Ky. 15, 1879 Ky. LEXIS 51, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/miller-v-commonwealth-kyctapp-1879.