People v. Leon

MUSSELL, J.

Appellant was charged with issuing a cheek without sufficient funds (Pen. Code, § 476a). It was alleged in the information that the appellant J. R. Leon, also known as Jerome F. Moki, on or about July 25, 1956, with intent to defraud the Bank of America, Upland Branch, and the Bank of America, Sixth and “K” Branch, Sacramento, California, made, drew, uttered and delivered to Aase Gram and Bank of America, Upland Branch, a check in the sum of $75, knowing at the time that he had neither sufficient funds in or credit with said bank for the payment of said check in full upon its presentation. Four prior felony convictions were also alleged in the information. Appellant entered pleas of “not guilty” and “not guilty by reason of insanity,” admitted one of the prior convictions alleged and denied the others. Trial by jury was waived and the court found appellant guilty as charged. The three prior convictions denied were found to be true and appellant was sentenced to imprisonment in the state prison. There was no disposition made by the court of the issue raised by the plea of “not guilty by reason of insanity.”

Appellant’s first contention is that the evidence was insufficient to show intent to defraud and there was no showing of a lack of sufficient funds or credit with the drawee bank

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to meet the check involved at the time it was presented for payment. This contention is without merit. The evidence shows that the check was presented to Aase Gram, a teller for the Bank of America, Upland Branch, on or about July 25, 1956. The check appeared to be a payroll check of “Moki’s School of Jiujitsu.” It was dated July 15, 1956, and drawn on the Bank of America, Sixth and “K” Branch, Sacramento, California, to the order of J. R. Leon. It was signed by Jerome K. Moki and endorsed by appellant in the presence of the teller, Aase Gram. She gave appellant cash in the sum of $75, the amount of the cheek. “Moki’s School of Jiujitsu” had no account in the Bank of America, Sixth and “K” Branch, on July 15, 1956, said account having been closed on July 6, 1956, at which time it was overdrawn in the sum of $20.81.

Exemplars of appellant’s handwriting were compared with the signature “Jerome F. Moki” on the check and the endorsement “Jerry Robert Leon” on the back thereof. There was evidence that the two signatures had been written by the same person. At the trial defendant denied signing “Jerome Moki” on the face of the check. However, on cross-examination, he admitted that he had told an officer that he wrote the name “Jerome F. Moki” to the check, rather “than to drag my family in. ’ ’