Title: Hawkins v. State

State: indiana

Issuer: Indiana Supreme Court

Document:

242 Ind. 111 (1961)
177 N.E.2d 40
HAWKINS
v.
STATE OF INDIANA.
No. 29,994.

Supreme Court of Indiana.
Filed September 21, 1961.
Robert L. Mellen, Mellen & Mellen, of Bedford and Gray & Waddle, of Petersburg, for appellant.
Edwin K. Steers, Attorney General, Richard M. Givan, Assistant Attorney General, and Richard C. Johnson, Deputy Attorney General, for appellee.
LANDIS, C.J.
Appellant was indicted for violating the Indiana Election Code in that he unlawfully failed to file account and statement of political funds *112 as required by the act.[1] After a trial by jury appellant was found guilty as charged, was fined in the sum of $500.00 and sentenced to the Indiana State Farm for 180 days. He appeals from the judgment.
Appellant's contention on this appeal inter alia is that the verdict is not sustained by sufficient evidence and is contrary to law.
The indictment in substance alleged that appellant Dewey Hawkins:
The statute[2] under which the indictment was drawn provides as follows:
The terms "political committee" and "political agent" used in said statute are defined as follows:[3]
Although the indictment set forth above obviously contained some matters of surplusage, it is undisputed that it was drawn on the theory that appellant became a treasurer of a political committee within the meaning of a portion of Burns' § 29-5703, supra, due to the fact that he was not a member of a political committee nor a political agent as defined in the act, but that he engaged in receiving or disbursing money for political purposes and therefore was deemed to be a treasurer of a political committee within the meaning of the statute.
Appellant however contends that no evidence was introduced to show appellant was not a member of a political committee nor a political agent, as alleged in the indictment.
Appellee (The State) in its brief has conceded that among the material allegations to be proved by the State were the allegations that appellant was not a member of a political committee and was not a political agent. What does the evidence show as to proof of these allegations?
Appellee submits as proof thereof the testimony of four witnesses for the State to the effect that each of them gave money contributions to appellant (who was county highway superintendent) for the purpose of aiding the political campaign of one John Sanders *115 who was a candidate for County Commissioner. Appellee also relies on the testimony of John Sanders for the State to the effect that at no time did he have any conversation with appellant regarding any campaign fund from the county highway members.
This evidence with all inferences favorable to appellee is entirely insufficient, however, to prove the allegations of the indictment that appellant was not a member of a political committee and that he was not a political agent.
There can be no question that under the statute upon which the indictment was predicated these were material allegations and appellee has conceded this to be true. The law is however well established that before a verdict of guilty can be sustained on appeal each material allegation contained in the indictment must be established by the evidence. Price v. State (1933), 204 Ind. 316, 318, 184 N.E. 181, 182; Luther v. State (1912), 177 Ind. 619, 622, 98 N.E. 640, 641. We must conclude the verdict was not sustained by sufficient evidence and was contrary to law.
In view of the result we have reached it is not necessary to consider the remaining contentions of error asserted by appellant.
Judgment reversed with directions to sustain appellant's motion for new trial.
Achor, Arterburn, Jackson and Bobbitt, JJ., concur.
NOTE.  Reported in 177 N.E.2d 40.
[1]  See: Burns' Indiana Statutes (1949 Repl.), §§ 29-5701  29-5715.
[2]  Burns' Indiana Statutes (1949 Repl.), § 29-5703, supra.
[3]  Burns' Indiana Statutes (1949 Repl.), § 29-5702, supra.