People v. Maltais

CHIPMAN, P. J.

Defendant was accused by information of having, on January 5, 1907, at the county of Siskiyou, unlawfully and feloniously stolen $80, lawful money of the United States, then and there the personal property of one J. Root, contrary, etc. He was found guilty of grand larceny and sentenced to four years’ imprisonment in the state prison at San Quentin.

Defendant appeals from the judgment and from the order denying his motion for a new trial. He urges as grounds of appeal: 1. That the evidence is insufficient, generally, to sustain the verdict; 2. That the evidence is insufficient particularly, because the venue was not proven; 3. That the court erred in overruling the objection made to a certain question asked by the prosecution of witness Ladue on cross-examination.

There is evidence tending to establish the following facts: Root, the complaining witness, came to the town of Dunsmuir from a lumber camp where he had been working, about midnight, or later, of January 4, 1905; he had come by way of Castella, where he had been drinking intoxicants to some extent. Arriving at Dunsmuir he went to the Palm saloon, which was a rooming-house as well as a saloon, and resumed his drinking and remained there at times most of the night. He went across the street during the night to the Weed restaurant and had supper and there met defendant, whom he had not before known or seen. He returned to the Palm saloon and defendant followed him. Root treated defendant and others several times and finally toward the morning of January 5th asked for a room. He brought with him something over $100 in twenty-dollar gold pieces and some silver. When treating in the saloon he displayed his purse and its contents in a way to apprise defendant of what money he had. When he asked .for a room defendant offered to show him to it and did so, taking the key and unlocking the door. As Root was about starting to Ms room he again made known his possession of the money in the hearing of defendant. On reaching the room defendant returned to

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the saloon and got a couple of drinks and took them to the room, where he and Boot drank them. Boot had meanwhile undressed and got in bed, placing his trousers under the pillow, leaving their legs hanging out. After drinking defendant left the room and Boot went to sleep, not locking the door. He arose about 11 o’clock of that forenoon and went down to the saloon, called for a drink and upon getting his purse discovered that all the twenty-dollar gold pieces were gone. He found in his coat pocket a ten-dollar bill which had been given him in part as change for a twenty-dollar gold piece during his drinking carousal and some small silver. There was evidence that he had at least four twenty-dollar pieces when he went to bed. Some time near noon on January 5th defendant deposited in the Dunsmuir State Bank four twenty-dollar gold pieces and it was the only time he had ever deposited any money there or transacted any business with the bank. At the time he remarked to the cashier, “You won’t say anything about this on the outside, will you?” There was evidence that defendant' was working in the Weed restaurant at $1.25 per day and board, and that he had been seen previously by persons who knew him and that he appeared to have no money except some small change. He cashed his certificate of deposit at the Weed Hotel on Jariuary 7th. Mr. Weed testified that he had known defendant as Moltin and he had so signed his name, and Weed called his attention to the name in the certificate as Maltais, to which defendant replied that it was a mistake though he had so signed his name at the bank. When Boot started to go to his room defendant said he knew about the rooms and would show him where to go, and there was evidence tending to show that defendant had never roomed there.