People v. Kennedy

WOOD (Parker), J. Defendant was charged in seven counts with issuing checks without sufficient funds. Trial by jury was waived. He was acquitted upon the first three counts and was convicted upon the other counts. His notice of appeal states that he appeals from the judgment and sentence. His contention is that the evidence was insufficient to support the conviction.

• The following references to the evidence pertain to the last four counts.

On June 15, 1952, Pyeem A. Joseph handed a cheek for $20 to the assistant manager of Crawford’s Markets at said market in Alhambra. The assistant manager O.K.’d the cheek, and the cashier gave Joseph $20 in exchange for the cheek. The assistant manager testified that, at that time, he saw defendant Kennedy “out in the ear,” and after the check was cashed he saw Joseph get in the car and saw defendant drive away.

About June 23, 1952, the owner of the Monte Vista Market in Montebello cashed a certain check for $20.

On June 23, 1952, Joseph handed a cheek for $20 to the cashier at the Market Basket market in Whittier, and she gave him $20 in exchange for the check.

On June 23, 1952, Joseph handed a check for $20 to a food clerk at the Safeway Store in Whittier, and she gave him $20 in exchange for the cheek. She testified that defendant was with Joseph when the check was cashed.

Joseph testified that the pen and ink writing on the front of said checks was his handwriting; and that the defendant was with him when he cashed the checks—with him “in the car when those cheeks were passed.”

The four checks, above mentioned, bore the purported signature of Pyeem A. Joseph. None of said cheeks was paid by the bank upon which it was drawn. Defendant did not have an account at any of those banks and did not have any arrangement for credit with any of them whereby a check drawn by him upon any of the banks would be honored.

Officer Slosson testified that he arrested defendant on July 2, 1952, at the Shelly Air Base when defendant came out to an automobile; he (officer) found two sheets of paper under the front seat of the automobile, upon which papers there was handwriting. Those papers are referred to as Exhibit H. On that exhibit there were, in handwriting, the names and addresses of 16 food markets, including the names of the markets here involved where cheeks were cashed.

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