Court Opinion

ID: 9616174
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 04:44:01.344333+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:03:55.813229
License: Public Domain

Townsend, J.,
dissenting. I agree that the evidence here demands a finding that the place of business was burglarized on Sunday, October 29, 1950, or Monday morning, October 30, 1950, between the hours of 8:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m., and that the corpus delicti was established; also, that valuable merchandise was taken from the premises, including a large quantity of cigarettes and cigarette stamps. It is the contention of the prosecution that the evidence is sufficient to support the verdict against this defendant because recently after the burglary a part of the stolen property was found to have been in the possession of the defendant. Hobbs v. State, 38 Ga. App. 205 (143 S. E. 509). However, the evidence here discloses that the defendant went to Tifton about 11 o’clock on the night of October 29 to a restaurant in the negro section of the town operated by a sister of one Lee Williams to' try to locate a plumber; that there he saw Perk Best whom he knew and of whom he inquired as to the whereabouts of the plumber; that Lee Williams at this point came up and informed him that he knew where a large quantity of cigarettes could be procured at a bargain; that the price was agreed on and Lee Williams and Perk Best went in the defendant’s automobile to the home of Lee Williams’s brother where Lee Williams got four cases of cigarettes which were put in the defendant’s automobile;, that upon their return to the Williams restaurant where the defendant had waited for them, Perk Best went to the home of the defendant at Lennox where the defendant gave Perk Best the money for the cigarettes; that about 12:30 the defendant went to the home of Etheridge (Pink) Griffin and contracted with him for the sale of two cases of the cigarettes which he delivered about 10 a.m. the following morning; that on Tuesday following the burglary the defendant, having heard about it, informed the sheriff that he had procured some cigarettes from Lee Williams and that Lee Williams could *196probably give him information as to where they came from; that thereafter the defendant was accosted by the sheriff and other investigating officers who informed him that Griffin stated he had purchased cigarettes which were a part of the proceeds of the burglary from the defendant; that thereupon the defendant first denied this, but upon later being confronted by Griffin admitted it. The defendant also stated to the officers that he had destroyed the other two cases of cigarettes which he obtained from Williams and which he did not sell to Griffin because he did not want to be found with them.
These facts are testified to by Williams and Best. The record discloses that on the day before Annis was tried, Williams was convicted of this burglary. The jury was therefore authorized to disregard the testimony of Williams. Sheffield v. Hammond, 41 Ga. App. 76 (151 S. E. 663); Doggett v. Simms, 79 Ga. 253 (4 S. E. 909). However, there is no evidence from which it can be deduced that Best had any connection with the burglary, or that he entered into any conspiracy with anybody which culminated in its commission. In my opinion Best stands as an unimpeached witness. He was not charged with having participated in the burglary.
Also it is my opinion that the association of Annis and Griffin between dark and 9 p.m. the night of the burglary in no way supports any connection with the burglary of Griffin. He likewise was not charged with its commission and the record in my opinion discloses no evidence connecting him with it. In Hampton v. State, 6 Ga. App. 778 (65 S. E. 816) it is held as follows: “The defendant’s guilt of the crime of burglary being wholly dependent upon the inference arising from the possession of stolen goods after the burglary, and this possession being shown by uncontradicted and unimpeached testimony to be consistent with defendant’s innocence of burglary, though he may have been guilty of receiving stolen goods, the verdict was contrary to the evidence, and a new trial should have been granted.”
In Gibbs v. State, 8 Ga. App. 107 (68 S. E. 742), the above language is substantially adopted as the second headnote. On page 108 it is further held as follows: “Upon the evidence submitted the conviction of the defendant was not authorized. The *197corpus delicti was proved, it is true, but the only circumstance connecting the defendant with the perpetration of the offense was the possession of part of the stolen property and this possession was so explained by uncontradictéd testimony as necessarily to rebut the inference arising from possession of the stolen property. The decision must be controlled by the ruling in Hampton v. State, 6 Ga. App. 778 (65 S. E. 816), and similar cases. If the witness who corroborated the defendant’s statement had been impeached or discredited in any way, we should not feel authorized to disturb the verdict. If there were any circumstance which would supply a reason why the jury did not believe this witness, we would not interfere. If there had been any testimony that the witness was unworthy of belief, on account of general bad character or of a conflict between different portions of the witness’s own testimony—if the witness had made contradictory statements either previously or upon the trial, or if there had been any evidence directly or circumstantially in conflict with her testimony, the verdict would be authorized; but a jury cannot arbitrarily disregard testimony which is wholly unimpeached and not contradicted, unless it is in relation to a matter which is unreasonable or impossible. If, upon another trial, the witness is shown by testimony to be unworthy of credit, for any legal reason or by any method provided by law, the testimony delivered upon this trial might be discredited and the jury authorized to disregard it; but in the absence of some testimony to this effect upon the trial now under review, it appears to us that the jury merely arbitrarily disregarded uncontradicted and unimpeached evidence; and it is beyond their power to do this in any case.”
While the defendant first made a contradictory statement in which he denied the sale of the cigarettes to Griffin, it appears to be well settled that this does not so adversely affect the testimony of an unimpeached witness explaining possession of property recently stolen as to authorize the defendant’s conviction. See Brooks v. State, 21 Ga. App. 661 (94 S. E. 810); Slaughter v. State, 24 Ga. App. 428 (100 S. E. 774); Willis v. State, 33 Ga. App. 352 (126 S. E. 303). I do not think the conduct of the defendant subsequent to the burglary in making a prior contradictory statement and in destroying the property not otherwise *198disposed of is sufficient to authorize his conviction, especially when construed with other acts and conduct of the defendant in giving evidence and advance information to the sheriff, and in procuring stamps for the cigarettes after acquiring them and learning that they were unstamped, not under circumstances of secrecy. I think therefore that the trial court erred in charging the juiy on the subject of conspiracy as complained of in special grounds 5 and 9 of the amended motion for a new trial. I also think that the evidence fails to support the verdict and that the case should be reversed on the general grounds.