People v. Hurst

COUGHLIN, J. Defendant was charged with the offenses of possession of a firearm after having been convicted of a felony, viz., a violation of Penal Code, section 12021, and possession of a tear gas cartridge, viz., a violation of Penal Code, section 12420; waived trial by jury; was found not guilty of [91]the former offense upon failure of proof of conviction of a prior felony; was convicted of the latter offense; and appeals.

The contentions on appeal are; (1) The court erred in admitting in evidence two tear gas cartridges which were the subject of the offense charged, because they were the product of an illegal search and seizure; (2) the court erred in admitting the testimony of an expert respecting the contents of the cartridges, because of lack of qualifications; and (3) the evidence was insufficient to sustain the conviction, because it did not establish defendant had knowledge the cartridges contained tear gas.

The two cartridges were the product of a search of defendant’s home, without a warrant, when he was arrested, without a warrant, for the offense of arson. Defendant contends the search and seizure were illegal because his arrest was without probable cause, and the search was general and exploratory.

On September 10, 1964, at 5 a.m., a fire broke out in the Laguna Village Apartments at Laguna Beach. An official investigation determined it was of incendiary origin. The premises had been leased to defendant, Art Bockstahler and James Jennings who used a part thereof as a cardiac rehabilitation center. The owner of the building told officers he had seen defendant’s and Jennings’ automobiles in garage stalls on the premises at 1 o’clock on the morning of the fire. These automobiles were not on the premises at the time of the fire. The officers determined the fire had been started with gasoline ; found two gasoline cans at the scene, one of which was filled; found a truck registered to a man named Jaeger in an open garage at the apartment complex; ascertained that Jaeger was a handyman employed by defendant, Bockstahler and Jennings; also ascertained Jaeger recently had purchased two gasoline containers like those found at the scene of the fire; and ascertained that Jaeger was admitted to a hospital on the morning of the fire suffering from burns which eventually claimed his life. While the officers were making their investigation to determine the cause of the fire defendant and Jennings appeared on the scene; offered an alibi respecting their whereabouts during the night before; stated they had been at a motel in Riverside where defendant, wearing a bright colored shirt, cashed a $100 bill. The officers checked out the alibi, but became suspicious because of its manufactured aspects in that defendant and Jennings were at the scene at 1 a.m., then went to Riverside to stay in a motel; and while at