People v. Postell

[32]

LILLIE, J.

Defendant was convicted of possession of marijuana in violation of section 11500, Health and Safety Code, denied probation and sentenced to the state prison. He waived his right to a trial by jury and by stipulation submitted the matter to the trial court upon the reporter’s transcript of the preliminary hearing, subject to the right to offer additional testimony. Defendant offered no defense and did not testify on his own behalf.

Appellant’s sole contention is that the trial court erred in refusing to permit cross-examination of the officer relative to the general description of the informant. There is no question relative to the sufficiency of the evidence to support the judgment.

Police Officer Leeds testified at the preliminary hearing that approximately two weeks before defendant’s arrest, he received a communication from a reliable confidential informant, who had previously supplied him with information resulting in an arrest, that defendant, out of his home at 1621 E. 45th Street, was dealing in narcotics in large quantities, which he obtained in nothing less than one-half pound packages, using a 1957 Chrysler to make pickups; that for two weeks he and three other officers kept defendant’s house under surveillance and noticed an uncommon amount of vehicular and pedestrian traffic around and in and out of the premises, with people going into the house, staying a few minutes, and leaving with small packages; that on April 24,1958, approximately one-half hour before the arrest, the same informant advised him defendant would arrive at his (defendant’s) house about 8 p. m., driving a 1957 Chrysler, with two kilo packages of narcotics; that he and other officers arrived at the location at approximately 7:50 p. m. and observed defendant drive up alone at approximately 8:15 p. m., and that they went up to the car, identified themselves, arrested him, and as he opened the driver’s side of the vehicle, found a large paper bag on the floorboards containing two smaller bundles of marijuana. The officer further testified that they then searched defendant’s house with his consent and found nothing. In a conversation at that time, defendant told them he did not know where he got the narcotic, he had just met a “guy” and picked it up on the street at 56th and Avalon, had just scored for it at approximately 7:30 p. m., was going to break it up into smaller portions and sell it (as he had been doing), this was approximately the sixth week he had been scoring from the same person, and he had been peddling approximately two kilos a week.