Opinion ID: 1395016
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Installation charges.

Text: Ginns's contract with the Commonwealth required the vendor to uncrate and install the Inter Royal furniture in the Danville facility. Raymond J. Kyber, Vice-President of Operations for Ginns's, testified that when Ginns was responsible for installing furniture, it generally employed others to perform that service. In preparing its successful bid, Ginns obtained from Mosteller, and factored in a quotation of $5,012 for installation services to be performed by Royal Installations. Royal Installations subsequently submitted to Ginns an invoice for $5,012 and received payment in that amount. Carl L. Phillips, Buildings and Grounds Superintendent at the Danville facility, testified that 90-95% of the Inter Royal furniture was installed by State personnel. Nevertheless, he conceded that Mosteller was there when the furniture was delivered, and that Mosteller and Robert McIntyre, of Royal Installations, assisted with the installation for approximately a day. McIntyre and his son were present several other times during the installation and rendered assistance to the State workmen. The record does not show why State personnel installed most of the furniture, when the Commonwealth's contract with Ginns imposed the responsibility for installation upon the vendor. The Danville institution was a new State facility but its maintenance crew had been employed before the new furniture arrived, and this crew was ordered by an official of the facility to unload and install the furniture. This evidence is insufficient to support Mosteller's conviction under the second count of this indictment. There was factored into Ginns's bid the charge for the furniture installation to be performed by Royal Installations. Mosteller and McIntyre, of Royal Installations, were present and available to do the work. There is no evidence that Royal Installations declined to perform the installation for which it had contracted or that Mosteller made any misrepresentation to Ginns or to the Commonwealth as to the responsibility for installation. Because of these unnecessary and gratuitous services performed by State personnel, Mosteller, acting through Royal Installations, was relieved of most of his contractual obligation to install, and was thereby enabled to derive greater benefit from the job. Through its own actions, the Commonwealth failed to exact of Ginns compliance with its contractual obligations. But this failure does not show either fraudulent intent or false pretense on the part of Mosteller. Accordingly, Mosteller's conviction under this count will be reversed and set aside.