State v. Loveless

42 P.2d 211, 39 N.M. 142
CourtNew Mexico Supreme Court
DecidedMarch 11, 1935
DocketNo. 4045.
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 42 P.2d 211 (State v. Loveless) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Loveless, 42 P.2d 211, 39 N.M. 142 (N.M. 1935).

Opinion

BICKLEY, Justice.

Appellant was informed against for unlawfully soliciting and writing insurance in New Mexico without having first obtained a license. He was convicted and sentenced to pay a fine of $200, and has appealed.

He complains of the generality of the allegations in the information, but, not having excepted thereto in the trial court, we need not consider this alleged error. Haynes v. U. S., 9 N. M. 519, 56 P. 282. State v. Sullinger, 36 N. M. 148, 9 P.(2d) 689.

The language of the information plainly shows, and the Attorney General concedes, that it purported to charge a violation of the provisions of section 71-135, Comp. St. 1929, which is as follows: “Any person writing or attempting to write, solicit, or procure insurance within the state of New Mexico without a license properly issued in accordance with the requirements of this act, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall he fined in a sum not less than fifty dollars, nor more than two hundred dollars, or imprisonment in the county jail of not less than thirty days, nor more than sixty days, in the discretion of the court; Provided, that this'section shall not apply to salaried officers or employees of licensed insurance companies who are visiting or instructing their licensed agents, and who do not receive any part of the commission on any business that they may write, solicit, or procure.”

The court instructed the jury:

“2. The Statute, section 71-111, of the New Mexico Statutes Annotated, 1929 Compilation, under which this prosecution is based, provides as follows: ‘Any person, partnership or corporation transacting any business of insurance in the State of New Mexico, without having first received a license to transact said business shall be guilty of a misdemeanor,’ etc.

“3. The material allegations of the Information necessary to be proved to your satisfaction and beyond a reasonable doubt are that on the 6th day of October, 1933, or at any time within two years next prior to the 20th day of October, 1933, being the date the information was filed in this court by the District Attorney, in the'County of Dona Ana, State of New Mexico, the defendant, P. A. Loveless, did unlawfully solicit and write insurance without first having obtained a license, and that he, the said P. A. Loveless, then and there was not a salaried officer, or employee of any licensed insurance company duly licensed and doing business within the State of New Mexico.

“4. If you believe from the evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that in the County of Dona Ana, State of New Mexico, on the 6th day of October, 1933, the date alleged in the Information, or at any time within two years next prior to the 20th day of October, 1933, being the date the Information was filed into Court by the District Attorney, the Defendant, P. A. Loveless, unlawfully did solicit and write insurance within the State of New Mexico, without first having obtained a license, and that the said P. A. Loveless, then and there was not a salaried officer or employee of any licensed insurance company duly licensed and doing business within the State of New Mexico, then you should find the defendant guilty in manner and form as charged in the Information.”

Appellant here complains of the giving of instruction No. 2, quoted supra, “for the reason that the information was not had under this section of statute, but under section 71-135,' and the action of the court in so charging the jury was prejudicial in informing the jury and leading them to believe that they were warranted in convicting the defendant if he had transacted any business of insurance, whereas the defendant was only charged under section 71-135, with having solicited and written insurance.”

The instruction was not excepted to. It has been often decided by this court that an erroneous instruction not in some manner challenged need not be considered on appeal. However, under the principles announced in State v. Garcia, 19 N. M. 414, 143 P. 1012, the restrictions of this rule apply only to the parties and not to this court, and this court, of its own motion, may see that a man’s fundamental rights are protected in every case and where such rights have been violated, while he may be precluded by the rule from insisting in this court upon relief from the same, the court has power in its discretion to relieve him. In State v. Bailey, 27 N. M. 145, 198 P. 529, 534, we said: “The giving of instruction No. 20 was not excepted to and need not necessarily be considered. * * * In connection with the discussion of these instructions, we do not wish to be understood as departing from the well-established practice of refusing to consider questions on instructions where they have not been duly saved. We have been led in this case to depart somewhat from the strict letter of the rule on account of the enormous consequences to the appellant; he being under sentence of death. Eor this reason alone, we have been desirous of satisfying ourselves that by no possibility has the defendant been unjustly convicted.”

It has sometimes been said that an objection that an instruction incorrectly stating the issues raised by the pleadings in a criminal case cannot be raised first on appeal. 17 G. J. “Criminal Law,” § 3333, note 5. An examination of the eases cited to the text show, however, that the alleged erroneous instructions contained propositions of law applicable to the ease. In the case at bar, the complaint is that the instruction said to be erroneous discloses an entire misconception as to the offense charged.

To understand the error into which the district attorney and the court fell, it will be well to look at our Insurance Code, chapter 71, Oomp. St. 1929 (section 71-101 et seq.), quoted by the court in instruction No. 2. Prom its language and context, this statute inveighs against insurance companies “transacting any business of insurance” in New Mexico without first having received a license to transact such business. It is quite apparent that section 71-111 applies to insurance companies “transacting any business of insurance,” while section 71-135 applies to agents who “write, solicit, or procure insurance.” The penalties for violation of the respective sections are different.

It has been held that doing or transacting insurance business includes taking of a note for an installment of premiums and transmitting it to the company. Where a company has made a voluntary assignment of its property, it will be considered as “doing business where such company has been transacting business in the state, although it ceases to take new risks.” Issuance of insurance policies is transacting insurance business. So is collecting premiums on policies in force even after withdrawal of agent from the state. Collecting premiums and paying losses on policies outstanding after the insurer’s withdrawal from the state has been held to be transacting insurance business. See Joyce on Insurance (2d Ed.) § 330-a.

None of these transactions necessarily involve writing, soliciting, or procuring insurance which is the subject of the legislation in section 71-135, and proof of participation by an accused in such transactions would be slight, if any, evidence that he had. written, solicited, or procured insurance.

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Bluebook (online)
42 P.2d 211, 39 N.M. 142, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-loveless-nm-1935.