People v. Bugg

MARKS, J.

This is an appeal from a judgment pronounced on Alvon J. Bugg, and from an order denying his motion for new trial, in a ease where he was charged, together with R. 0. Bugg, with the crime of resisting an officer. R. C. Bugg was acquitted and we will hereafter refer to Alvon J. Bugg as the defendant.

We find it necessary to summarize the evidence supporting the verdict and judgment but will not concern ourselves with conflicting evidence.

O. R. McMillen was deputy constable of Porterville Township of Tulare County. Doyle B. Grigsby, Lloyd A. Hensley and William E. Vaughn were police officers of the city of Porterville in Tulare County.

On the evening of September 14, 1946, Grigsby and Mc-Millen were on duty at the Green Mill, a dance hall located in the city of Porterville. There was a disturbance outside and the two officers went out to investigate. They saw defendant strike another person, knocking him down. They went up to defendant and told him he was under arrest. Defendant hit Officer McMillen on the jaw. Officer Grigsby took defendant by the arm and defendant made “four or five passes” at him. Grigsby worked his gas gun out of his pocket and was about to discharge it at defendant’s chest when defendant struck his arm forcing it up so that the gun discharged in defendant’s face. Defendant cursed the officers and the attitude of the crowd was threatening. The officers sent a third party to Porterville for additional police officers. Help was slow in coming so the two officers also went to Porter-ville for assistance. When they returned to the Green Mill they found officers Hensley and Vaughn at the scene. They had arrived in a city police car. They were holding defendant who had kicked officer Hensley in the groin. The officers finally got one handcuff on defendant and “managed to drag him over to the (police) car.”

It should be needless to say that this evidence is more than sufficient to sustain the conviction of defendant of the crime of wilfully resisting an officer in the discharge of his

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duties (Pen. Code, § 148), and that it would require very-serious errors of law to permit a reversal of the judgment pronounced upon him as clearly there was no miscarriage of justice in this case. (Const., art. VI, § 4 1/2.) Defendant had committed the crime of battery (Pen. Code, § 242) in the presence of the officers as well as upon two of them and they had the legal right to arrest him without a warrant. (Pen. Code, § 836.) That he resisted their lawful attempt to place him under arrest is obvious.