People v. Rodgers

HART, J.

The defendant was convicted in the superior court of Merced County of the crime of burglary of the second degree. (Pen. Code, sec. 460, subd. 2.) The appeals here presented by him are from the judgment of conviction and the order denying his motion for a new trial.

The only point urged by the defendant for a reversal is that the verdict is not supported by any evidence introduced by the People, in that there is no evidence tending to connect him with the commission of the crime except the uncorroborated testimony of an accomplice.

The crime charged in the information was committed “on or about” Saturday, the twenty-first day of April, 1928,

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in the town of Dos Palos, in Merced County, at some time between, approximately, the hour of 8 P. M. of the day named and the early morning of the following day, which, of course, was Sunday. The building entered was occupied by a general merchandise store of which one E. T. Stewart was the owner.

It appears from the testimony of said Stewart that, either on Saturday, the 21st of April, or the preceding day (Friday) and prior to the usual time for closing the store for the day, the defendant, accompanied by a boy of the age of fifteen years, as the latter testified was his age, and who gave his name as William Martin, entered the Stewart store, looked about for a brief time, then made a small purchase of candy and thereupon left the store. On the evening of the 21st of April, near the hour of 8 o’clock, Stewart, after taking the money which had accumulated in the till from the day’s sales transferred it to his safe, locked and barred the doors and windows of the store and went to his home. Between half-past 6 and 7 the following morning (Sunday) Stewart returned to the store, and, before entering it, noticed that one of the panes of glass in the front door had been removed. He stepped into the store and upon an investigation discovered that a miscellaneous quantity of merchandise (shoes, cigarettes, watches, pocket Imives, postage stamps, gloves and also some pennies which he had left in the till) had been stolen and taken from the store. The witness found on the outside of the store near the back window one of a pair of gloves which had been taken with the other articles mentioned. Later, the witness testified, the mate to the glove was delivered to him. Immediately after discovering that his store had been robbed, Stewart telephoned to John Campbell, the constable of the township, and informed him of the commission of the crime. Campbell immediately proceeded to make an investigation and finally discovered the goods underneath a warehouse in or near a corral in Dos Palos. Stewart identified the goods so found as being those that had been taken from his store on the occasion referred to. Stewart further testified that after the discovery of the stolen property and the arrest of the defendant and Martin, Constable Campbell brought the latter into the presence of the witness. Stewart stated that he asked the two men to state the truth