Hopkins v. State

• Decision Date: 28 October 1942
• Docket Number: A--10023.
• Citation: Hopkins v. State, 130 P.2d 543, 75 Okla.Crim. 268 (Okla. Crim. App. 1942)
• Parties: HOPKINS v. STATE.
• Court: United States State Court of Appeals of Oklahoma. Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma

130 P.2d 543

75 Okla.Crim. 268

HOPKINS v. STATE.

No. A--10023.

Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma

October 28, 1942

Syllabus by the Court.

1. In every criminal prosecution it devolves upon the state to prove, first, the corpus delicti; second, that the crime charged was committed by the accused.

2. The "corpus delicti" means, when applied to any particular offense, the actual commission by some one of the particular offense charged.

3. The corpus delicti may be established without showing that the offense charged was committed by the accused.

4. An extrajudicial confession of the defendant is not sufficient to warrant his conviction without additional proof that the crime charged has been committed. There must be, in addition to the confession, proof of the corpus delicti, and, where the corpus delicti is established by independent evidence, a conviction based upon the defendant's voluntary confession is warranted.

5. The finding of 390 pints of whiskey in unoccupied automobile and extrajudicial statement by defendant that automobile and whiskey belonged to him held sufficient to support conviction.

Appeal from Court of Common Pleas, Oklahoma County; Carl Traub Judge.

Leonard Hopkins was convicted of unlawful possession of intoxicating liquor, and he appeals.

Affirmed.

Carl Hogge and Robt. R. Rittenhouse, both of Oklahoma City, for plaintiff in error.

Mac Q Williamson, Atty. Gen. and J. Walker Field, Asst. Atty. Gen for defendant in error.

JONES Judge.

The defendant, Leonard Hopkins, was charged in the Court of Common Pleas of Oklahoma County with the unlawful possession of intoxicating liquor, was tried, convicted and sentenced to serve thirty days in the county jail, pay a fine of $50 and costs, and has appealed.

The sole contention of defendant is that the evidence is insufficient to sustain the verdict.

The evidence showed that officers Kolb and Smith searched an empty automobile at the 1100 Block on North Eldridge Avenue Oklahoma City, on September 13, 1940, and seized 390 pints of tax paid whiskey. Without objection on the part of defendant's counsel, the officers were allowed to testify that the lady at the premises where the car was found told them that it belonged to the defendant, Leonard Hopkins. On the Monday following the seizure of the liquor on Saturday, the defendant appeared at the sheriff's office inquiring about his automobile. At that time, in a conversation with the officers and the county attorney, he told them that the automobile was his and that the whiskey belonged to him; that he was carrying the title in the name of L. W. Fisher, but that the car was in fact the defendant's.

No motion to suppress the evidence was filed and no question was raised concerning the admissibility of the...