State v. Erb

28 N.W.2d 24, 238 Iowa 612, 1947 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 399
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedJune 17, 1947
DocketNo. 46954.
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 28 N.W.2d 24 (State v. Erb) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Erb, 28 N.W.2d 24, 238 Iowa 612, 1947 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 399 (iowa 1947).

Opinion

Hale, J.

On November 19, 1945, a search warrant was issued out of the municipal court of Sioux City on an affidavit of J. E. Young, a police officer. Under this warrant there was attached a quantity of personal property covering presses and material in a printing office, together with a large quantity of finished and unfinished material, including certain types of tickets which the evidence shows were used in gambling, baseball tickets, finished and unfinished, all listed and described in the return of service of such warrant.

On the 21st o'f November the court issued an order for the preservation of the property seized. On November 23d notice of seizure was served upon Roy Erb and a copy thereof posted in the building at 409 West Seventh Street, Sioux City. On trial motion to dismiss was filed by Roy Erb, owner and claimant of the property, which motion was overruled.

From an order of forfeiture by the municipal court defendant appealed to the district court. He again filed motion to dismiss and to set aside the search warrant, denying the sufficiency of the notice. This was overruled and defendant filed answer and claim of ownership, alleging that the articles seized were not and are not gambling devices or implements kept in violation of law; that the premises were not used as a gaming house, or place resorted to for "gambling, nor were any gambling devices or implements kept there; that the seizure was without proper authority, without legal, reasonable, or probable cause, and without legal basis and in violation of the constitutional rights of claimant. After introduction of evidence judgment was entered in the district court ordering the confiscation and destruction of the property seized. The defendant appeals to this court.

I. The statement of errors in claimant-defendant’s brief and argument is, 1, a general objection to the court’s overruling *615 of claimant’s motion to dismiss. Assigned errors numbers 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 assert that the court erroneously admitted certain testimony. Defendant did not argue these assignments separately, nor are they set forth in the manner prescribed by Rule 344, Iowa Rules of Civil Procedure.

Defendant attempts to assail the court’s 'rulings by merely referring to page and line of the record, without setting out the objection to the ruling of the court, and groups the objections in a form designated as a statement of. errors. We have held that a mere repetition in argument of statements in the assignment of errors will not be considered by this court. Patterson & Co. v. Seaton, 70 Iowa 689, 692, 28 N. W. 598; Hull v. Independent Sch. Dist., 82 Iowa 686, 689, 46 N. W. 1053, 48 N. W. 82, 10 L. R. A. 273, and cases cited; Heinse v. Beers, Iowa, 212 N. W. 305. Here there is not even such repetition. Plaintiff argues, and correctly, that complaint in argument of rulings on admissibility of evidence will be disregarded when the argument is general and presents no proposition on a specific ruling or any brief points. Urdangen v. Fryer, 183 Iowa 39, 42, 166 N. W. 693; Rauch v. Des Moines Elec. Co., 206 Iowa 309, 218 N. W. 340, and cases cited.

Plaintiff further argues that where defendant assigns error on ruling on introduction of evidence, but in his brief of points and law makes no reference thereto, he is not entitled to a review of such ruling on appeal. Citing Hoyt v. Hoyt, 137 Iowa 563, 115 N. W. 222. An assignment of error as to the admission of evidence, not presented by a brief point, will not be considered. Thomas v. Wyckoff, 187 Iowa 148, 174 N. W. 26. Plaintiff further refers to the ruling of this court, frequently stated, that errors assigned on appeal and which are not argued are deemed waived. Citing Rule 344, Iowa Rules of Civil Procedure; State v. Neifert; 206 Iowa 384, 220 N. W. 32, and cases cited; State v. Mead, 237 Iowa 475, 22 N. W. 2d 222, and cases cited.

Since there has been no compliance with the often-repeated rulings of the court in the assignment and argument of errors or propositions submitted, we may disregard such assignment. However, in our examination of them we are convinced that *616 there was no error of the court to which the objections raised by the defendant would apply.

II. Defendant’s third statement of error is:

“The court erred in permitting the state’s witness, Joe Young, to testify, over objections of claimant, to the conversations over the telephone.”

The incident complained of took place during the service of the search warrant. Young was a police officer participating. At the time, Frank Cummerfield, apparently an employee or with an interest of some kind in the printing office, was present. While thus engaged in the seizure of the property under the search warrant Young answered two calls over the telephone. He testified that someone stated over the telephone that the call was from the Harbor Inn, and directed to have Frank deliver a gross of numbers; that the second call purported to come from a place called Baseball Headquarters, and was also an order for a gross of tickets designated by numbers. Defendant urges that the evidence was improper, hearsay, and suggests that it had the characteristic^ of “staged” telephone calls. It is not open to these objections.

Aside from telephone orders there was ample evidence, oral and written; the latter consisting of orders, shipping bills, list of customers, and other documents, which showed an extensive business in furnishing supplies of the nature of part of those seized. There can be no doubt, under the evidence, that the tickets printed in the office were used for gambling. They were for use in a form of lottery, known throughout the country as “numbers.” In the form of the game in this instance there were cash prizes of three to twenty dollars, with various forms of tickets sold at a low price. “Baseball” tickets, finished and unfinished, were among the articles seized. These also were used in gambling games. The evidence indicates that the facilities of the printing establishment were very largely used for producing these gambling tickets. There is no serious question raised as to the nature of the articles stored on the searched premises, and that they were kept for sale and sold at the establishment. The seizure of property took place where *617 these tickets were being manufactured for the purpose of sale and sold. Testimony of tbe fact that orders were received was properly admitted. Under this state of the record the admission of testimony as-to the receipt of orders during the service of the search warrant was not error.

III. Defendant-claimant in his divisions 10, 11, 12, and 13 assails the action of the court in ordering, the confiscation and destruction of the items mentioned in his judgment, for the reason that each item of property so ordered to be confiscated is of a nature and character wholly and totally different from the nature and' character alleged in the information filed, upon which the proceeding is founded, and that no item so confiscated is of the nature and character alleged in said information.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Stewart v. Hilton
77 N.W.2d 637 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1956)
State v. Walters
58 N.W.2d 4 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1953)
Carlson v. Bankers Trust Co.
50 N.W.2d 1 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1951)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
28 N.W.2d 24, 238 Iowa 612, 1947 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 399, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-erb-iowa-1947.