Los Angeles herald., 1891-08-29
An Interesting Decision on
Attachments.
Tome Bing Beats the Law After
a Two Years Fight.
A Clerks Error Nullifies His Sentence
to the County Jail.
Several Interesting Habess Corpus Cases.
A Question whether "Craps'' il q
Percentage Game y The
Board Of Equali nation
Suits-Notes.

Two supreme court decisions of con-
siderable interest to the bar were re-
ceived in this city yesterday by Deputy
Clerk M. j. Ashmore, in both Of which
the judgments Of the lower court were
affirmed. In the case of N. w. Cow,
appellants, vs. H. B. Marshall and the
Centinela-Inglewood Land company, re-
spondents, the question of what consti-
tutes legal attachment of debt is
decided. The decision reads
"It is alleged in the complaint that,
on the 18th day of March, 1883, the
plaintiff. N. w. Cow, commenced an
action against H. B. Marshall to re-
cover the sum Of $l6s6.7s for work and
labor performed and money paid; that
a summons was duly issued and served
on the defendant; that writ of attach
ment was also duly issued and delivered
to the sheriff of the county, and the
plaintiff then gave to the sheriff in
formation in writing that the Centinela-
Inglewood Land company, corporation,
had in its possession, or under its con-
troll, certain credits belonging to the de-
fendant;;' that the sheriff served the
writ upon the said corporation by de-
livering to it's president q copy thereof,
together with notice that said credits
were attached under and in pursuance
of said writ and that no reply to the
notice was made; that thereafter, such
proceedings were had in the action that
on the 29th of March, 1888, judgment
was duly rendered and entered, therein
in favor OF the plaintiff and against the
defendant for the sum prayed for and
costs, making in all the sum of $1705. So !;
that thereafter the corporation, by an
order of the court, was requested to and
did, by it's president, attend before the
court to be examined, and the president
was then and there examined, respect-
ing the property in his possession !. that
upon such examination the president
denied that anything was due from the
company to the defendant, and there
upon the court made an order permit
ting the plaintiff to institute a suit
against the corporation, garnishee for
the recovery of such interest or debt
due the defendant Marshall. and in the
meantime forbid tranefer or other dis
position of such interest OF debt until
such action should be commenced and
prosecuted"
At the first trial of the case in the
lower court, the court found that the
garnishee owed the defendant 1868 and
no more, and also that the plaintiff ac-
duired no claim to this debt of the cor
poration to the defendant by virtue of
the proceedings in the attachment. The
supreme court holds that:
ut appears from the complaint that
the only attachment in this case was OF
certain credits belonging to the de-
fendant,' which the Centinela-Ingle-
wood Land company had in it's possess
sion or under it's control. This was not
an attachment of the debt due from the
company to the defendant, and the
plaintiff therefore acquired no lien or
right to such debt by the service of this
writ" The judgment is therefore af-
frmed.
WHITE VS.. MIKE.
In the case of White, respondent, vs..
McKie, appellant, the supreme court
refuses to pass upon the preponderance
OF the evidence introduced in the trial
in the following opinion:
upon the question whether defend
ant refused to carry out and perform
the contract made between plaintiff and
the South Rialto Land and Water COM
pany, we cannot disturb the finding OF
the court below, az it cannot be said
that it is without evidence to justify it.
The question here, when a finding is
aesailed as being against evidence, is
not as to the preponderance of evidence,
but only whether there was d subetan-
tial conflict in the evidence, and if there
was. the finding of the lower court is
conclusive here. Judgment and order
affirmed"
"NoT TO EXCEED ONE YEAR"
Tom Bing. a Chinese gambler who
was arrested and convicted early in
1889 Of gaming, and whose case was
carried to the supreme court from this
county, where the judgment of the
lower court was approved. was yester-
discharged after serving one day of his
sentence. Bing's commitment read that
he should be fined $3.50 Or imprisoned
in the county jail until this
sum and the costs of
the prosecution, amounting to $34, were
paid mot to exceed one year." The
record OF the case shows that the sen-
tence was passed on "May 25," without
any year being specified, and that the
defendant was committed to "the county
jail'' Of no particular county. Deputy
District Attorney McComas appeared
before Judge Mckinley yesterday morn
ing and got an order allowing the record
to be corrected in these particulars, but
later in the day Bing was brought be-
fore Judge Van Dyke on writ. His
attorney, Hon. S. M. White, called the
courts attention to the fact that Bing
had been cent to the county jail for a
time mot to exceed one year" which
was indefinite and illegal. The court
thereupon granted the writ and dis
charged the defendant.
'CRAP" PLAYER DISCHARGED.
M. L. Robbins, who wac committed to
the county jail by Justice R. W. Rog-
ers, of Santa Monica, to await trial for
running a "crap" game, was also re-
leased from custody yesterday by Judge
Van Dyke on writ OF habeas corpus.
The complaint in the case charged that
Robbins conducted crap game, but it
did not say THAT such game was per.
centage game and therefore a crime.
The petition for a writ was based on the
statement that the complaint did not
charge a public offense. Deputy Dis
tfict Attorney McComas held that the
defendant could have demurred to the