Com. v. Dickerson

• Decision Date: 20 November 1903
• Citation: 76 S.W. 1084
• Parties: COMMONWEALTH v. DICKERSON.
• Court: Kentucky Court of Appeals

76 S.W. 1084

COMMONWEALTH v. DICKERSON.

Court of Appeals of Kentucky.

November 20, 1903

Appeal from Circuit Court, Green County.

"Not to be officially reported."

Indictment of John W. Dickerson for giving spirituous liquor to another. From a judgment of acquittal, the commonwealth appeals. Affirmed.

Clifton J. Pratt and M. R. Todd, for the Commonwealth.

SETTLE J.

The appellee, John W. Dickerson, was indicted in the Green circuit court for giving spirituous liquor to another in a local option district, the charge in the indictment being that he did "unlawfully give, procure for, or furnish to one Ed Handy a drink of spirituous or vinous liquor in a local option district, when the local option law was then in full force and effect." In the trial of the appellee under the indictment the only witness introduced was Ed Handy, who testified that in November, 1902, in the town of Greensburg, the appellee gave him a drink of whisky, he being at the time 21 years of age, and not an inebriate. It was admitted that the town of Greensburg was in a local option district at the time. Upon the conclusion of the evidence the appellee moved the court to peremptorily instruct the jury to find him not guilty, which motion was sustained by the court, and the peremptory instruction given, in obedience to which the jury returned a verdict of acquittal. The commonwealth's attorney excepted to the ruling of the court in granting the peremptory instruction, and prayed an appeal to this court which was granted.

The question presented by the appeal for our consideration is whether or not it is a violation of the local option law for a person to give another a drink of spirituous, vinous, or malt liquor in territory where that law is in force. It is contended for the commonwealth that the appellee was guilty of a violation of the local option law as amended by the act of March 11, 1902 (Acts 1902, p. 41, c. 14). The only provision of that law which makes it an offense to "give" to another "spirituous, vinous, or malt liquors" is found in section 2, wherein it is declared that "it shall be unlawful for any person to sell, lend give, procure for, or furnish to, another any spirituous vinous, or malt liquors, or to have in his possession spirituous, vinous, or malt liquors for the purpose of selling them in any territory where said act is in force, and any person so offending shall be fined not less than $50.00 nor more than...