Chapman v. United States

• Decision Date: 29 January 1926
• Docket Number: No. 4634.,4634.
• Citation: 10 F.2d 124
• Parties: CHAPMAN et al. v. UNITED STATES.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit

10 F.2d 124 (1925)

CHAPMAN et al. v. UNITED STATES.

No. 4634.

Circuit Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit.

December 21, 1925.

Rehearing Denied January 29, 1926.

Cecil H. Smith, of Sherman, Tex. (Head, Dillard, Smith, Maxey & Head, of Sherman, Tex., Ratliff & Ratliff, of Tishomingo, Okl., and J. H. Mathers, of Oklahoma City, Okl., on the brief), for plaintiffs in error.

Randolph Bryant, U. S. Atty., of Sherman, Tex.

Before WALKER, BRYAN, and FOSTER, Circuit Judges.

BRYAN, Circuit Judge.

This is an indictment in nine counts against six defendants. The first count alleges a conspiracy, under section 37 of the Criminal Code (Comp. St. § 10201), to transport motor vehicles from Oklahoma to Texas and from Texas to Oklahoma, with knowledge that they had been stolen, in violation of the National Motor Vehicle Theft Act. 41 Stat. 324 (Comp. St. Ann. Supp. 1923, §§ 10418b-10418f). Numerous overt acts to effect the object of the conspiracy are alleged. The other counts charged all the defendants with the substantive offenses of transporting motor vehicles in interstate commerce with knowledge that they were stolen; each of said counts specifying a particularly described automobile, which was also referred to in connection with some of the overt acts alleged in the first count. Only two of the defendants, Chapman and Lynn, have sued out writ of error. Chapman was convicted on the first, second, and third counts, and Lynn on the first or conspiracy count. Chapman was sentenced to pay a fine of $2,500 and to be imprisoned in the United States penitentiary for 18 months; but in default of the payment of the fine he was sentenced to imprisonment for 2 years. Lynn was sentenced to pay a fine of $3,000 and to be imprisoned in the United States penitentiary for 15 months; but in default of the payment of the fine he was sentenced to be imprisoned for a period of 2 years.

There was sufficient evidence, if believed by the jury, to sustain the verdict. According to the testimony, Chapman and Lynn arranged to buy and did buy a number of Ford cars, which they knew were stolen and brought from Texas into Oklahoma. They also, by agreement, bought Ford cars stolen in Oklahoma and sold them in Texas. One Russell, who testified for the government, had been convicted in Texas of a felony, and his testimony was admitted, over the objection that it was incompetent.

It is argued that the conspiracy count is bad, because it charges more than one criminal offense. It is permissible to charge a conspiracy to commit several offenses in the same count of an indictment. Bailey v. United States (C. C. A.) 5 F.(2d) 437. It is also insisted that there was a misjoinder of offenses, in that the evidence failed to connect some of the defendants with the substantive offenses of transporting automobiles which they knew had been stolen. It is not shown that injury resulted from this, but, on the contrary, it appears that the court carefully protected the rights of each defendant. The substantive offenses related to the same automobiles described in the overt acts, but the evidence failed to show that all of the defendants were guilty of the substantive offenses. The crimes were all of the same class and were properly joined. R. S. § 1024 (Comp. St. § 1690).

The...