George H. Goodman Co. v. Commonwealth

• Decision Date: 22 January 1907
• Citation: 99 S.W. 252
• Parties: GEORGE H. GOODMAN CO. v. COMMONWEALTH.
• Court: Kentucky Court of Appeals

99 S.W. 252

GEORGE H. GOODMAN CO. v. COMMONWEALTH.

Court of Appeals of Kentucky.

January 22, 1907

Appeal from Circuit Court, Graves County.

"Not to be officially reported."

The George H. Goodman Company was convicted of the illegal sale of liquors, and it appeals. Affirmed.

Sam'l H. Crossland and B. C. Seay, for appellant.

W. H Hester, N. B. Hays, Atty. Gen., and Chas. H. Morris, for the Commonwealth.

LASSING J.

This is an appeal from a judgment of the Graves circuit court imposing a fine of $100 upon appellant for the alleged illegal sale of liquors in Mayfield, a prohibition town. The evidence shows that, some time in December, 1905, one R. E Foster, a resident of the city of Mayfield, purchased of Lee Adair, who claimed to be the agent of appellant company, a quart of whisky, gave him the money therefor at the time of the purchase, and that later in the day the whisky was delivered to him. Adair admits taking the order for the whisky, collecting the money thereon, telephoning the order for the whisky to Paducah to appellant, and that they sent the whisky to Mayfield for delivery. Appellant was arraigned in the Mayfield police court, charged with selling whisky to R. E. Foster, tried, and a fine assessed against it in the sum of $60. An appeal was taken from this judgment to the Graves circuit court, and upon a trial therein appellant was fined $100, and from the judgment predicated on this verdict appellant prosecutes this appeal.

Appellant's first complaint is that the prosecution in the police court should have been commenced by an indictment, and relies upon section 3524, Ky. St. 1903, and section 306, Cr. Code Prac to support this contention. It is true that section 306 of the Code provides that "no indictment shall be necessary in prosecutions for violations of the by-laws or ordinances of a city or town, nor in other prosecutions in police or city courts, unless the punishment of the offense exceed a fine of $100, or confinement for thirty days." But section 1141, Ky. St. 1903, provides for prosecutions by information in all cases where the fine does not exceed $100, and confinement in jail does not exceed the period of 50 days, and under this section of the statute the prosecution was properly begun in the police court. Appellant complains that no information was filed upon which to base the prosecution. But in the case of Wade v. Commonwealth, 3 Ky. Law Rep. 442, it was held that the same strictness is not required, and need not be observed, in proceedings in inferior courts as is required in courts of superior jurisdiction. Section 330 of the Criminal Code of Practice provides: "No written information nor pleadings shall be required in prosecutions in justices' courts." Section 310 of the Criminal Code provides that "upon information given by a peace officer, or by a private person, on oath, to the clerk of the court, that an offense within the jurisdiction of the court, and not requiring an indictment for its prosecution, has been committed, the clerk shall issue a summons against the offender;" and section 311 provides: "The summons mentioned in the last section shall command the peace officer to whom it is directed to summon the defendant [[[naming him] to appear in the court on a day to be named in the summons, to answer the charge made against him of having committed an offense [naming or briefly describing it], and to return the summons," etc. The object of the information is to notify the person to be tried of the nature of the offense with which he stands charged. Appellant cannot complain that he...