People v. Williamson

166 N.W. 917, 200 Mich. 342, 1918 Mich. LEXIS 839
CourtMichigan Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 27, 1918
DocketDocket No. 189
StatusPublished
Cited by19 cases

This text of 166 N.W. 917 (People v. Williamson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Williamson, 166 N.W. 917, 200 Mich. 342, 1918 Mich. LEXIS 839 (Mich. 1918).

Opinion

Stone, J.

The defendant was convicted in the recorder’s court of the; city of Detroit of the offense of wilfully and unlawfully going armed with an offensive -and dangerous weapon, to wit, a revolver concealed upon his person at the city of Detroit on April 13, 1917, not. then and there having a license to go armed, in violation of the provisions of section 15236, 3 Comp. Laws 1915, being Act No. 274 of the Public Acts of 1911, as amended; the title of the act being in part as follows:

"An act to prohibit the sale, keeping for sale, loaning, giving away or carrying of certain dangerous weapons; to prevent the carrying of concealed weapons except in certain specified cases when a license is issued therefor; to provide punishment for the violation of the provisions hereof,” etc.

The provisions of said section applicable to the case are as follows:

[344]*344“It shall be unlawful for any person, except as hereinafter provided, to go armed with a * * * revolver * * * or other offensive and dangerous weapons or instruments concealed upon his person.”

Upon the trial of the case the sole testimony (except that of the proper officer that no license to carry concealed weapons had been issued to defendant) was that of a police officer who testified that he arrested defendant about 3:10 p. m. of April 13, 1917, in the city of Detroit. And further:

“I searched him and found that gun on him. (Gun produced and marked exhibit 1, and offered in evidence.) He had the gun in his inside pocket on the right-hand side of his coat. The pocket was a short pocket, up high. I could not see it. I asked him what authority he had to have a revolver. He said .he had no authority. He had a badge on, ‘Metropolitan Detective Agency/ He said there was a foreigner down there going away with some woman.”

On cross-examination the witness testified:

“I examined the. gun as soon as I saw it. It was not loaded, and he did not have any cartridges upon his person.”

Thereupon the people rested, and there was no evidence offered on behalf of defendant.

Among other things, the trial court charged the jury as follows:

“Now, gentlemen, the law prohibits any person from carrying any weapon that is a dangerous weapon, such as a dagger, sword, pistol, revolver, metallic-knuckles, pocket-billy, sand-bag, skull-cracker, slung shot, razor, without a permit; in fact, no person is allowed to carry any weapon that is concealed, without a permit, coming within the meaning of the statute. * * *
“Now this is a very simple issue in this case. Did the defendant have the gun concealed as stated by the people’s witness, and if he did, did he have a permit to carry a gun, or to carry one from the proper authorities? If you find that he had this gun on his [345]*345person concealed as testified to by the people, and you believe that beyond a reasonable doubt, it makes no difference, gentlemen, whether it is, loaded or unloaded. If you believe that it (the gun) was found upon his (respondent’s) person, as testified to by the people, and you believe, further, beyond a reasonable doubt, that he had no permit to carry this gun, then your duty, gentlemen of the jury, if you believe that beyond a reasonable doubt, is. to convict this defendant on the charge in the information. * * *
“I will charge you, gentlemen of the jury, that as a matter of law, that it makes no'difference whether the gun was loaded or unloaded. If you find that he was carrying it, and carrying it concealed,' as I told you, beyond a reasonable doubt, it is your duty to convict him; if you further find, as I have already said to you, that he had no permit to carry one.”

There was a motion to direct a verdict of not guilty for the reason that the weapon was not loaded, and that no harm was intended, and that it was not a dangerous weapon, which motion was refused.

After defendant’s conviction he was sentenced to be confined in the Detroit house of correction for a period of not less than six months nor more than two years, with a recommendation that he serve six months. There was a motion for a new trial; but the record is silent as to whether the motion was ever heard or not, and there are no exceptions to any refusal to grant such motion. We cannot, therefore, consider such motion.

The defendant has brought the case here upon writ of error, and error is assigned upon the parts of the charge above set forth. Also, that the court erred in refusing to direct a verdict of not guilty on the ground that there was no evidence that the defendant did go armed with a dangerous weapon, and, also, upon the ground that the weapon was not loaded, and was not a dangerous weapon.

Counsel for defendant contend that a distinction [346]*346should be made between “carrying a concealed weapon” and “going armed with a concealed weapon.” In our opinion, if a person knowingly carries a dangerous weapon concealed upon his person, he is, within the meaning of the statute, going armed with a dangerous weapon concealed upon his person.

It is also urged that under the statute a material element of the offense is the unlawful or felonious intent with which the weapon is carried, and that no such intent was shown in the case. The farthest any of the authorities go, is that the intent required to make one punishable under the enactments against carrying concealed weapons, is an intent to do the act'prohibited by the statute, viz.: to carry weapons concealed upon the person, and that the ultimate purpose is immaterial. See 5 Am. & Eng. Enc. Law (2d Ed.), p. 734 et seq., and cases cited in notes.

While there is a diversity of holdings in the different States, depending largely upon varying local statutes, the great weight of authority is to the effect that the intent, or purpose with which the weapon is carried, is not an element of the statutory offense. Of course, if the weapon was carried upon his person through restraint or ignorance, that would be a good defense to the prosecution. But nothing of that kind is claimed in the instant case. The following cited cases are in point upon this question: State v. Williams, 70 Iowa, 52; Walls v. State, 7 Blackf. (Ind.) 572; Ridenour v. State, 65 Ind. 411; Cutsinger v. Commonwealth, 70 Ky. 392; Strahan v. State, 68 Miss. 347.

In the last cited case, the sheriff gave-his pistol to defendant for the purpose of having it repaired. Defendant was accustomed to do such jobs, and after receiving the pistol carried it to his home two or three miles distant, and afterwards at the owner’s request brought it back. While on his way, he carried the [347]*347pistol in his pocket for the sake of convenience. The trial court refused an instruction asked by defendant that the jury should acquit, under the foregoing facts. It was held by the supreme court that the trial court properly refused the instructions asked by the defendant, and that the verdict of guilty was sustained by the evidence. The court said':

“The defendant did the act forbidden by the statute, which makes the prohibited fact and not the intent criminal.” Citing cases.

In State v. Martin, 31 La. Ann.

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Bluebook (online)
166 N.W. 917, 200 Mich. 342, 1918 Mich. LEXIS 839, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-williamson-mich-1918.