People v. Johnson

FOURT, J.

In an information filed in Los Angeles County on September 16, 1965, Johnson and Garrison were charged with robbing William Harris of about $25 on June 22, 1965. It was further charged that Johnson previously, on November 10, 1964, was convicted of a violation of section 11530, Health and Safety Code, a felony. Defendants pleaded not guilty and Johnson denied the prior conviction. In a trial before the court, without a jury, each defendant was found guilty of robbery in the second degree. No finding was made by the judge with reference to the truth of the charged prior felony conviction even though the superior court file of the case (People v. Johnson, No. 290,718) was introduced into evidence by the prosecution, and that record discloses that Johnson had pleaded guilty to the charge of possessing narcotics as charged in the information. Each defendant was sentenced to the state prison for the term prescribed by law. The court further, in spite of making no finding as to the truth or falsity of the charged prior, in Johnson’s ease numbered 290,-718, revoked the probation previously therein granted and sentenced Johnson to the state prison, the sentence to run concurrently with the robbery sentence. A timely notice of appeal was filed for each defendant.

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A résumé of some of the facts is as follows: The crime occurred on the evening of June 22,1965, at about 10 p.m. when "William C. Harris, a 61-year old maintenance man at the Regency Hotel on Hollywood Boulevard, was returning from the drugstore with a quart bottle of 7-Up and a newspaper for one of the guests at the hotel. Suddenly appellants, clad in T-shirts and dark pants, jumped out of a car parked at the curb and accosted Harris. While Garrison ran toward the victim, talking loudly and shaking his fists, Johnson maneuvered himself to a position behind Harris. Harris tried to hit Johnson over the head with the soft drink bottle, but Johnson knocked it out of his hand, grabbed his arm and threw him down, shouting to Garrison, “Get his billfold.” Both defendants then began beating Harris and finally Garrison took Harris’ wallet, which contained about $25. Once Garrison had the wallet, Johnson told someone in the parked car to get going and the car then turned right and drove down Fairfax. Johnson ran east and Garrison ran west down Hollywood Boulevard.

Harris returned to the hotel and called the police, who arrived soon thereafter and took him to Hollywood Receiving Hospital for treatment of shoulder and knee injuries. That hospital and the Hollywood police station are on the same grounds with adjoining entrances. As Harris was leaving the hospital he saw Johnson and Garrison in handcuffs entering the police station and he immediately identified them to the police as his assailants.