State v. Lyon

176 Iowa 171
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedMay 5, 1916
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 176 Iowa 171 (State v. Lyon) 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. Lyon, 176 Iowa 171 (iowa 1916).

Opinion

Preston, J.

1. As appellant states the issues, the indictment charges the defendant with having committed the crime of perjury by having testified falsely in his hearing or trial before the justice of the peace, Geo. Monlux, on or about August 26, 1915, by testifying on the witness stand in said hearing or trial, and while under oath, as follows, to wit:

‘ ‘ That he did not sell intoxicating liquor to the said John Hegarty on or about the 25th day of August, 1915, and did not accept money therefor, whereas in truth and in fact the said Luther Lyon did sell intoxicating liquor to the said John Hegarty and did accept money therefor, and did thereby wilfully, corruptly, unlawfully, knowingly and feloniously commit perjury, contrary to the statute in such case made and provided. ’ ’

The record shows that, at some time prior to the indictment in this case, defendant had been arrested, tried and convicted in justice court for the offense of selling intoxicating liquors. He was charged with having sold the liquors to a [173]*173man named Hegarty. Upon the trial of that case, the defendant was a witness in his own behalf, and testified that he' did not sell any liquor to Hegarty and that he did not receive any money from Hegarty for liquor. On the trial under the indictment in this case, the State proved the transaction which it claims was a sale of liquor by defendant to Hegarty, and proved that defendant did receive one dollar from Hegarty for liquor delivered by defendant to Hegarty. The purchase of the liquor had been arranged by the marshal of the town, who had given to Hegarty a marked one dollar bill. This bill was paid by Hegarty to the' defendant, and when defendant was arrested, the money was found on his person. And in return for the money, it was proven that defendant delivered to Hegarty two half-pint bottles filled with liquor.

1. Perjury: evidence: sufficiency. The contention of appellant is, as we understand it, that it was not shown that the liquor was in the possession of or owned by the defendant, but that, at most, defendant was acting only as agent for Hegarty and obtained the liquor irom the possession ox someone other than himself; and further, as bearing upon the question as to whether his testimony was corrupt, that defendant was only placing his construction upon the transaction as to whether it constituted a sale under the law.

2. silnments^s" only2 effect.1* But there are two specifications in the indictment, the proof of either of which would be sufficient to sustain a conviction. These are, as before set out in stating the issues, that the defendant testified that he did not se^ the whisky, and that he did not accept money. We shall refer to the testimony bearing upon the first specification. Hegarty testified that .he first met defendant two years before, and again Fair week, and paid him a one dollar bill for liquor which defendant delivered; that there were two half-pints, and he gave them to the justice, and testifies as to the payment of the marked money. The marshal testified that he marked the one dollar bill and put the number down in a book, and that [174]*174he delivered it to Hegarty and saw Hegarty hand the money to defendant and saw defendant deliver two half-pints of whisky to Hegarty. Another witness testifies that, when defendant was searched after his arrest, the one dollar bill that had been marked by the marshal and delivered to Hegarty was found in defendant’s possession at that time and, among other articles, some corks of the size for use in half-pint liquor bottles.

The record does not show just where the defendant obtained the liquor which was delivered to Hegarty. It does show that defendant himself produced the whisky and that he received pay for it; that, .when approached by Hegarty and asked if he could furnish him some whisky, defendant simply replied, ‘ ‘ Give me that money, ’ ’ and almost immediately produced the liquor. The record shows that Hegarty had purchased liquor from the defendant prior to that time. So far as the State’s evidence shows, the liquor was produced by the defendant and turned over to Hegarty by him, and there is no showing that the liquor was purchased from anyone else, thus refuting the position of the defendant that he was simply acting as an agent for Hegarty in the purchase of the liquor. It would have been a matter of defense for the defendant to have shown that he purchased the liquor from someone who had authority to sell it, but the defendant did not become a witness in his own behalf, in this case, and no testimony was offered by him.

The statute provides that the liquor law is to be construed so as to prevent evasion. We think the jury were justified in finding that there was a sale by defendant to Hegarty, and that his claim that he was acting only as an agent is a mere pretense or evasion in an attempt to escape punishment.

2. As to the other specification, defendant testified that he did not accept money for the intoxicating liquor sold to Hegarty. The evidence is very clear and is undisputed in this case that the defendant did accept the one dollar bill from Hegarty for the whisky which defendant delivered to Hegarty, [175]*175and, even though it be conceded that such sale was by defendant as agent for Hegarty, or anyone else, the statement on oath by the defendant that he did not receive money, in view ■of his acceptance of the one dollar bill, would constitute perjury.

3. evi™Scet evN ' dence obtained by search of person. 3. Appellant complains of the introduction in evidence of the marked one dollar bill. This bill was in possession of ■defendant at the time he was arrested, and it was introduced in evidence in connection with the testimony of the marshal. The objection now made is ... , ., ..... ,, . . . , that it was compelling appellant to give tes, . tnnony against himself, contrary to his constitutional rights, and they cite Constitution of the United States; Boyd v. United States, 116 U. S. 616, 633; Reifsnyder v. Lee, 44 Iowa 101; State v. Height, 117 Iowa 650; State v. Sheridan, 121 Iowa 164.

4. evidence: objection: sufficiency. The only objection made by defendant to the exhibit was that it was incompetent, irrelevant and immaterial, and not properly identified. We think there was no such objection made as would save the defendant’s right to raise the question in this court which he seeks to present.

In the cited eases, there was either unlawful search or a fraudulent or unlawful use of process, and the like, and it was held in some of them that the constitutional prohibition of unreasonable searches and seizures is closely related to the immunity which a citizen enjoys against being compelled to bear witness against himself.

In the instant case, the evidence does not show the compulsory production by the defendant of the money which was afterwards used against him. There was no unlawful seizure ■of the money or the property from the person of defendant at the time of his arrest.

In the Reifsnyder case, supra, cited by appellant, it was held that police officers, upon the arrest of one charged with felony, may make search of his person for stolen property, [176]*176instruments used in commission of the crime, or any article which may give a clue to its commission, or the identification of the criminal.

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

Related

State of Iowa v. Hannah Marie Kilby
Supreme Court of Iowa, 2021
State v. Post
123 N.W.2d 11 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1963)
State v. Roff
93 N.W.2d 107 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1958)
United States v. Rossi
182 F.2d 292 (Second Circuit, 1950)
Stokes v. State
35 S.W.2d 727 (Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, 1931)
State v. Huntley
216 N.W. 67 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1927)
Zingg v. Mitterer
204 N.W. 247 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1925)
State v. Griffin
124 S.E. 81 (Supreme Court of South Carolina, 1924)
State v. Tonn
195 Iowa 94 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1923)
State v. Browman
191 Iowa 608 (Supreme Court of Iowa, 1921)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
176 Iowa 171, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-lyon-iowa-1916.