People v. Price

MARKS, J.

This is an appeal from a judgment pronounced on defendant after his conviction of the crime of grand theft.

Defendant argues as his sole ground for reversal of the judgment that the information filed against him does not state facts sufficient to constitute a public offense. He did not question the sufficiency of the information in the trial court.

The charging part of the information is as follows:

“Earby Price is accused by the District Attorney of the County of San Diego, State of California, by this information of the crime of grand theft from the person committed as follows : The said Earby Price on or about the 14th day of February, 1941, at the said County of San Diego, State of California, and before the filing of this information did then and there wilfully, unlawfully and feloniously take from the person of one Burdette Cleary, a yellow gold mans’ Gruen wrist watch, $60.00 in lawful money of the United States, a check for $600.00 lawful money of the United States, and a check for $30.00 lawful money of the United States.”

It should be observed that it is not alleged that the stolen property was “the personal property of another” which is part of the definition of the crime of theft. (Sec. 484, Penal Code.) Thus, we have here an example of very careless pleading which would have required a reversal of the judgment prior to the amendments of section 952 of the Penal Code in 1927 and 1929. (See

People

v.

Hanselman,

76 Cal. 460 [18 Pac. 425, 9 Am. St. Rep. 238];

People

v.

Ammerman,

118 Cal. 23 [50 Pac. 15];

People

v.

Cleary,

1 Cal. App. 50 [81 Pac. 753]

People

v.

Sing,

42 Cal. App. 385 [183 Pac. 865].)

The Attorney General relies on such cases as