People v. Dixon

46 Cal.2d 456 (1956) THE PEOPLE, Respondent,

v.

DOROTHY DIXON, Appellant.

Crim. No. 5816. Supreme Court of California. In Bank.

May 4, 1956. Dorothy Dixon, in pro. per., John H. Marshall and Henry S. Rupp for Appellant.

Edmund G. Brown, Attorney General, and William E. James, Deputy Attorney General, for Respondent.

TRAYNOR, J.

Defendant appeals from a judgment of conviction entered after the court sitting without a jury found her guilty of one count of possessing heroin. (Health & Saf. Code, 11500.) She also appeals from an order denying her motion for a new trial.

Defendant resided in a court apartment rented from Ramona Lopez, who occupied another apartment of the same court. Sometime during the evening of November 29, 1954, Officer O'Grady of the Narcotic Division of the Los Angeles Police Department entered and searched the apartment of Mrs. Lopez but failed to find any narcotics or substances commonly used in cutting them.

Thereafter, at about 10:30 p. m., Officer O'Grady, accompanied by Officer Kennedy and State Narcotics Inspector Wells, entered defendant's apartment, placed her under arrest, and told her to remain seated on the bed while they searched her apartment. They did not have a warrant. In defendant's kitchen cupboard they found an opened carton of milk sugar, which is used to cut heroin. Officer O'Grady testified that defendant appeared extremely nervous and on several occasions got up and "wandered around" the room while the officers were searching it. He told her that if she did not remain seated until they finished, it would be necessary to handcuff her. She insisted on going to the bathroom and told him that she had recently aborted herself and that [458] she was "having difficulties." He offered to call a doctor for her if one was necessary or to see that she received medical attention before going to jail. As he turned his back, she took something from the upper part of her dress. He ordered her to hand it to him, and when she refused and made a motion to place it in her mouth, he and the other officers seized her arms to keep the object from her mouth. She kicked one of the officers, and in the ensuing struggle they lifted her onto the bed and forced a key from her hand. She admitted that it was the key to one of the apartment garages rented by her. Officer O'Grady and Inspector Wells entered the garage and found 10 latex bags containing preparations of heroin that had been cut with milk sugar. Defendant produced keys to two other garages. In one of them the officers found a box of empty capsules.