Opinion ID: 2046882
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Final Instruction

Text: The fourth allegation of error made by defendants concerns the refusal by the trial court to give a final instruction tendered by them. The instruction reads as follows: You are hereby instructed that it is the law of the State of Indiana that mere possession of stolen property, without other evidence of guilt, is not to be regarded as prima facie evidence of larceny, robbery, receiving stolen property, or burglary. It must be shown that the possession was exclusive, recent, and involved a distinct and conscious assertion of property. Possession of stolen property is a factor which may be considered by the trier-of-fact as evidence of guilt. Johnson v. State, (1963) 245 Ind. 295, 198 N.E.2d 373. The evidence against the defendants was not limited to the possession of the stolen property. Therefore, the instruction sought by the defendants would have been an improper comment upon the weight of the evidence against the defendants and was properly refused.