People v. Garcia

California Supreme Court
People v. Garcia, 25 Cal. 531 (Cal. 1864)
1864 Cal. LEXIS 64
Sawyer

People v. Garcia

Opinion of the Court

By the Court, Sawyer, J.

There was no error in overruling the demurrer to the indictment. The property is alleged to have been brought into Tuolumne County, and the offense was indictable in that county. (Wood’s Digest, 277, secs. 87-92.)

The offense is charged in the language of the Act defining it, (Wood’s Digest, 339, sec. 70,) and the circumstances under which it was committed are fully set out. This has repeatedly been held to be sufficient under our statute, without using the word “ feloniously.” (6 Cal. 487 ; 7 Cal. 403 ; 10 Cal. 309 ; 14 Cal. 30 ; 19 Cal. 601.)

On the 20th of January the District Attorney filed an affidavit, stating that a witness for the prosecution, who had been subpcenaed, was absent, and the facts which he expected to prove by him, and asked a postponement of the trial. The prisoner’s counsel opposed the postponement, and offered to admit the facts expected to be proved by the absent witness, and thereupon made, and permitted to be entered upon the *534records of the Court, an admission “ that the property mentioned in the indictment was intrusted to the defendant by Edward C. Bell, to take to the ranch in Merced County. * * And that the value thereof is as set forth in the indictment.” Upon the entry of this admission upon the records, the Court denied the motion to postpone the trial.

On the 21st the case was called for trial. Again the defendant’s attorney, in the presence of the defendant in open Court, ■ admitted the same facts, and consented that the admission be again entered on the records of the Court, which was accordingly done. '

After examining several witnesses on the part of the prosecution whose testimony tended to prove the same and other facts, the District Attorney, without objection by the defendant, read to the jury from the records of the Court the admissions thus made and entered, and rested.

After the District Attorney had made his opening argument to the jury, and during the argument of defendant’s counsel, the counsel for defendant, for the first time, asked the Court to strike from the testimony the admissions read in evidence as before stated, on the ground that the testimony was illegal and incompetent. The Court refused to strike out, but no exception was taken to the ruling.

The defendant’s counsel, at the close of the argument, asked the Court, substantially, to charge the jury to disregard the said admissions read in evidence, which the Court refused to do, but no exception was taken to the refusal. The admission of this evidence, and the several subsequent rulings in regard to it, are assigned as error. The admission was a solemn admission of record of a fact at the commencement of the trial, and for the purposes of the trial, by the prisoner’s counsel in open » Court, in his presence, and we must presume with his consent. And the admission was on the trial read from the record, in pursuance of the purpose for which the admission and record were made, without any objection on the part of the prisoner. An admission of a fact made at the trial in open Court by the prisoner or his counsel may be properly considered by the *535jury, (3 Greenl. Ev., Sec. 39; People v. Hobson, 17 Cal. 425— 431,) and such we consider this to be. No exception was taken to the subsequent rulings in regard to it.

We cannot presume that the charge was oral. The presumption is that the action of the Court was in pursuance of the law, and that the charge was in writing. (People v. Ching Let, 17 Cal. 322.) If the Court gave the charge orally, the ■ fact should appear in the record. The strong implication from the record is that the charge of the Court was in writing. For it appears that the Court at first gave a written charge, asked by the District Attorney, with an oral explanation, to which defendant excepted because the explanation was not in writing, whereupon the Court withdrew the instruction and oral explanation, reduced the same to writing, and read them to the jury as written, directing the jury to disregard them as first given. It does not appear that any oral charge was given other than as just stated. If there had been, the Court, after what occurred, would undoubtedly have corrected the error. We think it was competent for the Court to correct the error at the time, in the manner shown by the record.

No other point requires notice.

Judgment affirmed.

Reference

Full Case Name
THE PEOPLE v. JOSE GARCIA
Cited By
18 cases
Status
Published
Syllabus
County where Indictment may be bound.—Where a hired servant who is intrusted by his employer with property withdraws himself from his employer and goes away with the property with intent to steal the same and defraud his employer thereof, he may be indicted and tried for the offense in any county into which he takes the property and is found. Indictment.—An indictment against a servant for withdrawing himself from his employer and taking with him his employer’s property, intrusted to him, with ’ intent to steal the same and defraud his employer thereof, is sufficient, if it charge the offense in the language of the Act defining it, and set out fully the circumstances under which it was committed. Admission in Criminal Case.—An admission of a fact made by a defendant’s counsel for the purposes of the trial in a criminal case, in open Court and in the defendant’s presence, and not objected to by him, and recorded by the Court, is presumed to be with the defendant’s consent, and may be read in evidence against him on the trial. Charge op Court in Criminal Case.—If the record does not show that the charge of the Court below was oral, the Supreme Court will not presume that it was oral, but the presumption will be that it was in writing. Oral Charge to Jury may be Withdrawn.—If a portion of the charge of the Court to the jury was oral, and counsel for the defendant objected to it on that ground, the Court may withdraw the oral charge and direct the. jury to disregard it, and reduce it to writing and give it as written.