Case Name: PIERCE v. STATE
Court: Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
Jurisdiction: Texas
Decision Date: 1921-06-08
Citations: 234 S.W. 537
Docket Number: No. 6314
Parties: PIERCE v. STATE.
Judges: 
Reporter: South Western Reporter
Volume: 234
Pages: 537–540

Head Matter:
PIERCE v. STATE.
(No. 6314.)
(Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas.
June 8, 1921.
Rehearing Denied Nov. 23, 1921.)
1. Criminal law <§=>! 144(1/2, 13, 14) — Presumption in favor of regularity of procedure, court’s charge, and sufficiency of evidence, in absence of statement of facts.
In the absence of a statement of facts, where no fundamental error appears, every presumption will be in favor of the regularity of the proceedings, the accuracy of the court’s charge, and the sufficiency of the evidence.
2. Criminal law <§=»539(2) — Warning unnecessary to render defendant’s testimony given on preliminary trial admissible.
Defendant’s testimony, given on preliminary trial before the justice of the peace, is admissible, though defendant was not warned.
3. Criminal law <§=>l 169(121) — -Admission of written confession harmless in view of verbal confession showing same facts.
The admission of written confession, if error, was harmless where a verbal confession as to same facts was properly admitted, under Code Cr. Proc. 1911, art. 810.
4. Criminal law @=517(4) — Verbal confession, shown to have led to discovery of stolen property, admissible.
In prosecution for theft, verbal confession was properly admitted, under Code Or. Proc. 1911, art. 810, where it was ‘shown that the stolen property had been discovered by means thereof.
On Motion for Rehearing.
5. Larceny @=55 — Evidence held to sustain conviction.
Evidence held to sustain conviction for theft.
0. Criminal law ©=529 — Written confession admissible, though sworn to.
Where defendant’s statement, made in examining court, while under arrest, contains all the requisites of a confession named in Code Cr. Proc. 1911, art. 810, it is not rendered inadmissible by the fact that it is sworn to, notwithstanding article 295, providing that a voluntary statement made in court shall be reduced to writing, but shall not be sworn to.
7. Criminal law <®=>556 — State bound by exculpatory statements of written confession only so far as not disapproved.
The state, having introduced written statement by defendant, was bound by its exculpatory statements only so far as they were not disapproved.
Appeal from District Court, Cherokee County; L. D. Guinn, Judge.
X. A. Pierce was convicted of theft, and he appeals.
Affirmed.
Perkins & Perkins, of Rusk, for appellant.
R. H. Hamilton, Asst Atty. Gen., for the State.

Opinion:
. MORROW, P. J.
Appellant was convicted of theft; punishment assessed at confinement in the penitentiary for a period of four years.
The record is before us without a statement of facts. Certain exceptions to the charge and the admission of evidence appear. It is a general rule that, in the absence of a statement of facts, where no fundamental error appears, every presumption Will be in favor of the regularity of the procedure, the accuracy of the court's charge, and the sufficiency of the evidence. Davis v. State, 2 Tex. App. 162, and other cases listed in Branch's Ann. Penal Code, § 602. Exceptions to this rule at times arise, but nothing in the record brings the instant case within any of them. Mitchell v. State, 2 Tex. App. 404, referred to by Mr. Branch in the section mentioned; Williams v. State, 77 S. W. 447; Walker v. State, 98 S. W. 265; Denton v. State, 42 Tex. Cr. R. 427, 60 S. W. 670; Hare v. State, 56 Tex. Cr. R. 6, 118 S. W. 544, 133 Am. St. Rep. 950; Brown v. State, 57 Tex. Cr. R. 269, 122 S. W. 565.
In the case before us, we are without the benefit of a brief for appellant, and there is but one bill of exceptions which challenges our attention. That relates to the introduction of the confession of the appellant. Two questions arise, namely: Was there a warning given? and, Was the confession voluntary?
The statement is sworn to and given in an examining court in the presence of the justice of the peace and the county attorney. It is not made clear from the bill whether it was in the nature of testimony on preliminary trial or a confession in the technical sense. If the former, the warning was unnecessary to render it admissible. Kirkpatrick v. State, 57 Tex. Cr. R. 17, 121 S. W. 511; Dill v. State, 35 Tex. Cr. R. 240, 33 S. W. 126, 60 Am. St. Rep. 37; Rios v. State, 183 S. W. 152.
We think the bill of exceptions does not show error. If this were doubtful, however, we would not feel authorized to reverse the judgment because of the admission of the statement, for the reason that it is disclosed by another bill of exceptions that there was introduced in evidence a verbal confession of the appellant, which we think was admissible under the phase of article 81Ó, which permits the use of verbal confessions where "they are accompanied statements made by the accused from which the confession is found to be true or which conduce to establish his guilt."
From the qualification of the bill complaining of the receipt of the verbal confession, it is made to appear that by means thereof the stolen property was discovered. This being true, the verbal confession was admissible. Smith v. State, 53 Tex. Cr. R. 643, 111 S. W. 939; Vernon's Texas Crim. Statutes, vol. 2, p. 756, note 12, and cases cited. The verbal confession having been properly admitted, and it going to establish the same fact to the proof of which the written statement was directed, any supposed error in the admission of the latter would be rendered harmless. Fulcher v. State, 28 Tex. App. 470, 13 S. W. 750; Brown v. State, 20 S. W. 924; Laurence v. State, 31 Tex. Cr. R. 601, 21 S. W. 766; Am. Digest (Century Edition) vol. 15, p. 933.
Especially is this true in the instant case, where effect must be given to the presumption that there was before the jury legal evidence adequate to sustain the conviction.
The judgment is affirmed.
<guwFor other cases see same topic and KEY-NUMBER in all Key-Numbered Digests and Indexes
(gzsjFor other eases see same topic and KEY-NUMBER in all Key-Numbered Digests and Indexes