People v. George

205 P.2d 464, 91 Cal. App. 2d 537, 1949 Cal. App. LEXIS 1259
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 29, 1949
DocketCrim. 2562
StatusPublished
Cited by20 cases

This text of 205 P.2d 464 (People v. George) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. George, 205 P.2d 464, 91 Cal. App. 2d 537, 1949 Cal. App. LEXIS 1259 (Cal. Ct. App. 1949).

Opinion

BRAY, J.

All defendants were convicted in the superior court of two crimes: (1) rape, and (2) conspiracy to commit rape. At judgment, the court ordered the sentences for the two offenses to run concurrently. From the judgment after jury verdicts, all defendants appealed. Motions for new trial and probation were denied..

Three contentions are made: (1) the trial court erred in denying defendants ’ motions to dismiss the indictments for lack of a speedy trial; (2) the testimony of the prosecutrix is inherently incredible, and therefore there is insufficient evidence to support the verdicts; and (3) prejudicial misconduct of the district attorney.

1. Were Defendants Denied a Speedy Trial ?

In considering this question the record is important. It follows:

April 29: Indictment returned.
May 3: Arraignment. Defendants moved for reduction of bail. Cause continued to May 10.
May 10: Motion denied. Cause continued, to plead.
May 17: Defendants demurred to indictment. Demurrer overruled. Pleas of not guilty. Trial set for June 15.
May 20: Defendants moved to have complaining witness undergo physical examination.
May 21: Hearing on motion continued to May 26 with consent of respective counsel.
May 26: Motion taken under submission. Cause continued to May 28.
May 28: Cause continued to June 3 with consent of respective counsel.
*539 June 3: Cause continued to June 4 with consent of respective counsel.
June 4: Cause continued to June 8 with consent of respective counsel.
June 8; Cause continued to June 10 with consent of respective counsel.
June 10: Cause continued to June 15 with consent of respective counsel, for hearing on motion for physical examination of complaining witness.
June 15: Motion requesting examination taken from the calendar. Cause continued to July 7 for trial. Record shows neither consent nor objection of counsel.
June 29: Expiration of 60-day period.
July 7; Cause continued to July 12 with consent of respective counsel.
July 12: Defendants moved to dismiss indictment because of lack of speedy trial. Cause continued to July 13 for hearing of motion. No objection made.
July 13: Motion to dismiss denied. “ Thereupon the court restated the trial date that has been allotted to this action, namely, July 26th, 1948.”
July 26: Trial began. Another motion to dismiss denied.

It is apparent that defendants either consented to, or acquiesced in, all continuances during the 60-day period and thereafter until July 13. While the record does not disclose any consent to the continuance of May 26, it shows no objection being made, and shows also that thereafter defendants consented to further continuances, and thereby waived any right to object to the preceding continuance to which they did not formally consent. The same is true of the continuance on June 15. On July 12, although defendants consented to the continuance of trial from July 7 to July 12 (and had consented, or not objected, to the other continuances, several of which were in connection with their motion for a physical examination, which was dropped from the calendar on June 15 because of the fact that the prosecutrix had voluntarily submitted to an examination by a doctor appointed by the court) they made a motion to dismiss the indictment on the ground that they had not been brought to trial within the 60-day period. Certainly they were not entitled to a dismissal at that time. To dismiss an indictment against defendants *540 who had consented to the setting of their trial beyond the 60-day period, because of the very act to which they had consented, would be a miscarriage of justice.

. . if the consent of defendant to the postponements from time to time was not equivalent to an application by him for postponement, it was sufficient excuse for the delay.” (People v. Benc, 130 Cal. 159, 162 [62 P. 404].) “The consent of a defendant that his trial on a criminal charge be set for a date beyond the sixty-day limit prescribed by subdivision 2 of section 1382, supra, is equivalent to a postponement upon his application within the meaning of that section, and is sufficient excuse for the delay. [Citing cases.] Consent is presumed when the defendant fails to object at the time the cause is set for trial beyond such period. [Citing cases.]” (Ray v. Superior Court, 208 Cal. 357, 358 [281 P. 391].) “The record shows no objection by defendant at the time the continuances were ordered, and his consent is therefore presumed.” (Pe ople v. Howe, 1 Cal.App.2d 518 [36 P.2d 820].)

On the hearing of the motion to dismiss, the assistant district attorney filed an affidavit (defendants filed no counter-affidavit nor made any counter showing to the matters set forth therein) which, after giving the history of the continuances in the case and the fact that defendants had consented to them, stated that before June 28, the attention of defense counsel was called to the fact that a murder trial which had been set for trial on June 28 was not to be tried as the defendant had pleaded guilty. The assistant district attorney requested defense counsel to agree to the advancement of the trial of this case from July 7 to a day during the week of June 28, which the latter declined to do. Further, there had been negotiations for some time between respective counsel concerning “a possible plea to be entered” by the defendants, and it was not until July 9 that those negotiations were finally concluded by the defendants declining to enter a plea different from that already entered. Also, during all the time this case was on the calendar of department 12 (the department to which it had originally been assigned), that department’s calendar was congested, there being at all times some 40 or 50 cases awaiting trial, and that department, as well as the other criminal departments of the court, had been engaged constantly in trials of criminal cases. It appears also from the transcript of the proceedings on July 12 and 13, that the court was then engaged in a murder case to be followed on July 19 (the date requested by defendants for the trial of this *541 case) by a burglary case, and that the first open date the court had was July 26. The judge asked the judge of department 11 to take the trial of the case, but he would not do so because of a criminal case going to trial there. Owing to the absence of one of the judges of the criminal department, there were only two judges left for the ensuing nine or ten days.

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Bluebook (online)
205 P.2d 464, 91 Cal. App. 2d 537, 1949 Cal. App. LEXIS 1259, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-george-calctapp-1949.