Commonwealth v. Scheiring

• Decision Date: 21 July 1915
• Docket Number: 194-1915
• Citation: 61 Pa.Super. 261
• Parties: Commonwealth v. Scheiring, Appellant
• Court: Pennsylvania Superior Court

61 Pa.Super. 261

Commonwealth v. Scheiring, Appellant

No. 194-1915

Superior Court of Pennsylvania

July 21, 1915

Argued May 11, 1915

Appeal by defendant, from judgment of Q. S. Butler Co.-1914, No. 18 on verdict of guilty in case of Commonwealth v. John J Scheiring.

Indictment for larceny. Before Reiber, J.

From the record it appeared that the indictment contained four counts. On the first three counts a verdict of not guilty was found by direction of the court. These counts charged larceny of specific sums but the charges were not sustained by the evidence. The fourth count of the indictment was as follows:

And the inquest aforesaid, upon their respective oaths and affirmations, aforesaid do further present; that the said John J. Scheiring, afterwards, to-wit, on the same day and year aforesaid, to-wit, on the second day of March in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and fourteen, in the county aforesaid and within the jurisdiction of this court, with force and arms, & c., being then and there a municipal officer or employee, to-wit, a clerk or receiving clerk in the employ of a municipal corporation, to-wit, the Township of Butler, in a certain department thereof, known as the tax collector of said township did as such municipal officer, clerk, servant or employee and by virtue of such employment, receive, have and take into his possession for and behalf and in the conduct of his duties as said municipal officer aforesaid from various persons whose names are to the grand inquest unknown and in various amounts the sum of five thousand ($ 5,000,00) dollars, lawful money of the United States of America, for and in the name and on the account of the said tax collector as aforesaid and did then and there fraudulently and feloniously embezzle and convert to his own use the said sum of money of the value of five thousand ($ 5,000.00) dollars, receive as aforesaid, and so the inquest aforesaid, upon their oaths and affirmations aforesaid do say that the said John J. Scheiring, then and there in the manner and form aforesaid, the sum of money, to-wit, five thousand ($ 5,000.00) dollars of the money, goods, chattels and property of the said tax collector of said Butler Township from the said tax collector of Butler Township, his employer as aforesaid, feloniously did steal, take and carry away contrary to the form of the act of the general assembly in such case made and provided and against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

The facts appear by the opinion of the Superior Court.

Verdict of guilty upon which judgment of sentence was passed.

Error assigned was refusal of binding instructions for defendant.

B. R. Williams, with him C. L. McQuistion and W. H. Martin, for appellant.

W. B. Purvis, with him J. M. Galbreath, for appellee.

Before Rice, P. J., Orlady, Head, Porter, Henderson, Kephart and Trexler, JJ.

OPINION

PORTER, J.

The learned judge of the court below, in his opinion refusing the motion for a new trial, very properly reached the conclusion that the count of the indictment upon which the defendant was convicted was founded upon and charged the defendant with the offense defined by sec. 107 of the Act of March 31, 1860, P L. 382, that is, larceny by a clerk, servant or employee of property of his employer...