People v. Midkiff

262 Cal. App. 2d 734, 68 Cal. Rptr. 866, 1968 Cal. App. LEXIS 2362
CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedJune 5, 1968
DocketCrim. 14464
StatusPublished
Cited by19 cases

This text of 262 Cal. App. 2d 734 (People v. Midkiff) 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. Midkiff, 262 Cal. App. 2d 734, 68 Cal. Rptr. 866, 1968 Cal. App. LEXIS 2362 (Cal. Ct. App. 1968).

Opinion

LILLIE, J.

A jury found defendant guilty of second degree burglary (§459, Pen. Code) and grand theft (§ 487, subd. 1, Pen. Code) ; he admitted three prior convictions of burglary. Defendant appeals from the judgment.

O’Keefe Medical Service and Eureka X-Ray Tube Company occupy the same premises at 841 South Grandview. At 7:30 a.m. on April 14, 1967, Mr. McKee, an employee of Eureka had trouble opening the lock on the side door because it had been tampered with; later certain of his tools left in order on his work bench were missing. Looking around he found some of them scattered in the O’Keefe part of the building; thereafter Mr. Puls, service manager of O’Keefe, and another tenant saw a small hole, 18” by 24”, in the roof of the front part of the showroom. A rope was hanging down to the floor from a rafter and there was debris over the showroom carpet and couches. Numerous items belonging to *736 O’Keefe were missing, 1 the total value of which was $830 or $840.

Around 6 a.m. on April 14, 1967, Mr. Basaraba, who lives across the alley approximately 30 feet from the South Grand-view premises, came around the corner of the apartment building and noticed a metallic blue Mercury Monterey parked in the alley immediately beside the rear door of the O’Keefe warehouse building; all doors were open and the front seat of the car was torn. He saw two men around the car on the driver’s side, one of whom he identified as defendant; he saw defendant enter the building through the door with a dolly. Mr. Basaraba went over to his own car and cleaned the rear window, all the while watching the car because he figured he would have trouble getting his own ear out. He then got in, started up and backed his car out to the west waiting there awhile hoping they would move the car. By this time he became suspicious and wrote down the license number, FGY 238, which he later turned over to the police. Finally, he saw defendant come out of the warehouse with the dolly, get into the car and move it to one side; he noticed a cream-colored item about two feet long, a foot high and a foot aeress in the rear seat, also a dark object. After the car was moved Mr. Basaraba proceeded to work.

Officer Dauer had information concerning a 1959 Mercury, license number FGY 238. On April 25, 1967, he saw the car twice—around 2p.m. and later at 3p.m.—and stopped it; defendant was driving and alone. The car was no longer metallic blue but black; the paint was a rough finish as though it had been handpainted by an inexperienced painter and the blue showed through the black. Officer Dauer arrested defendant. Various items missing from the South Grandview premises were in the vehicle.

For the defense Mary Hall testified that on April 12, 1967, around 6:30 p.m., defendant came to her apartment accompanied by two men; he knew she had a blank cash receipt book and wanted to use it because he was selling his car to them and they were making a deposit; he wrote a receipt making two copies, the white one he gave to the two men and kept the pink carbon copy; a cash transfer of funds took place and within ten days to two weeks the balance was to be paid *737 on the morning of April 25, 1957, the two men returned with the ear and left it saying they would have the money for it in a day or two; defendant drove her to work that morning; the ear had been freshly painted and was loaded with merchandise consisting of women’s clothing; there were a few items in the front seat and the back was loaded.

On rebuttal Officer Willis testified that around 4 p.m. on April 25, 1967, at the police station he advised defendant of his constitutional rights; he asked defendant if he understood them and he said that he did; he asked defendant if the car belonged to him and defendant said the car was his; he asked him if he had ever loaned the ear to anyone and defendant answered, “No” and that no one other than he had used the car since he had acquired it. Defendant was not asked whether he sold the ear, and he did not volunteer any statement that he had sold it.

Without merit is appellant’s contention that his statements to Officer Willis were not admissible in evidence because they were made prior to being advised of his right to counsel; and that while he was advised generally of his rights after he made the statements he was not told that he could have an attorney present during his interrogation. Officer Willis’ testimony establishes that an hour after defendant’s arrest, and at the police station, defendant was properly advised of his constitutional rights in accord with Miranda v. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436 [16 L.Ed.2d 694, 86 S.Ct. 1602, 10 A.L.R.3d 974], and that immediately thereafter defendant told him that the car was his, he never loaned the car to anyone and no one other than he had used the car since he had acquired it.

The People did not offer defendant’s statements on their case in chief; the statements were offered on rebuttal to refute the claim of defense witness, Mary Hall, that defendant sold his car thus, at the time of the burglary he did not have possession of the vehicle. However, before the statements were received in evidence extensive testimony was taken outside of the presence of the jury for the purpose of permitting the judge to determine whether defendant had been properly advised of his constitutional rights under Miranda (§405, Evid. Code). Thus Officer Willis testified that following defendant’s arrest and at Rampart police station he, Officers Dauer, Farmer and Johnson and defendant were present; before defendant made any statements he advised defendant *738 of his constitutional rights ; 2 defendant did not indicate that he did not understand the admonition, to the contrary, he “stated that he understood it”; then he asked defendant if the car belonged to him and defendant said that it was his car; he asked defendant if he had loaned the car to anyone and defendant stated no; asked, ‘You have, no one else has ever used this car since you acquired it?” defendant answered, “That’s right”; then questions were asked defendant concerning the articles in the car at which time defendant indicated he didn’t want to make any further statements and wanted to see his attorney. At the termination of this testimony defense counsel argued to the trial judge that there had not been a “proper waiver” by defendant of his constitutional rights, that the officer did not go far enough to determine whether defendant desired to “give up” his rights, and “I don’t think they [People] have carried their burden.” The court replied, “I am satisfied that they have.” Then for the limited purpose of the hearing, defendant testified on voir dire

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
262 Cal. App. 2d 734, 68 Cal. Rptr. 866, 1968 Cal. App. LEXIS 2362, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-midkiff-calctapp-1968.