People v. Ah Lee

ANGELLOTTI, J.

The defendant Ah Lee and one Ye Quong were jointly charged by information filed in the superior court of Stanislaus County on April 15, 1912, with the crime of murder, alleged to have been committed in said county on March 25, 1912. Ah Lee demanded and was accorded a separate trial, which resulted in a verdict of “guilty of murder of the first degree.” His motion for a new trial was denied, and on May 11, 1912, judgment of death was pronounced. This is an appeal by said defendant from the judgment and from an order denying his motion for a new trial.

No claim is made that the verdict is without sufficient support in the evidence, and an examination of the record shows that there is no foundation for any such claim. The evidence is without conflict on the .proposition that during the evening of March 25, 1912, in his place of business in Newman, Stanislaus County, the deceased, Sue Hoo Kee, was shot by two Chinamen who apparently entered the place -solely for the purpose of killing him, who then and there inflicted upon him several mortal gunshot wounds, which at once caused his death, and immediately thereafter left the place. There was sufficient evidence to warrant a conclusion on the part of the jury that said Ah Lee was one of the murderers.

[352]

A photograph was received in evidence over the objection of defendant, to show the relative location in the room of deceased, at the time of the shooting, of a bed, a stove, and a lamp. Even if there was error in the admission of this photograph, we do not see how, in view of the evidence as to the shooting, it could be held that it was in the slightest degree prejudicial to defendant. But we perceive no error in the matter. The photograph was taken by the witness Newsome shortly after the shooting, and at a time when the objects referred to were in exactly the same position that they were at the time of the shooting. Newsome was a constable and was in the room immediately after the shooting, and so testified. While a photographer, who was not called as a witness, finished the picture from the negative given him by Newsome for that purpose, Newsome testified substantially that the finished picture offered in evidence was a correct representation of the objects sought to be shown and their relative location at the time he took the picture. A sufficient foundation for the admission of the photograph was thus laid. It is not claimed that the photograph was not admissible if there was a sufficient showing that it was a correct representation of the objects sought to be shown and their relative location at the time of the shooting. The only objection urged is that there was no such showing, and we are satisfied the objection is not well based.