People v. Boyce, 83.

• Decision Date: 03 June 1946
• Docket Number: No. 83.,83.
• Citation: 23 N.W.2d 99,314 Mich. 608
• Parties: PEOPLE v. BOYCE.
• Court: Michigan Supreme Court

314 Mich. 608

23 N.W.2d 99

PEOPLE

v.BOYCE.

No. 83.

Supreme Court of Michigan.

June 3, 1946.

Appeal from Recorder's Court of Detroit; John P. Scallen, judge.

Leonard Boyce was convicted of breaking and entering a dwelling in the night-time with intent to commit larceny therein, and he appeals.

Affirmed.

Before the Entire Bench.

John R. Dethmers, Atty. Gen., Edmund E. Shepherd, Sol. Gen., of Lansing, and Gerald K. O'Brien, Prosecuting Atty. for Wayne County, and Michael A. Guest, Asst. Prosecuting Atty., both of Detroit, for the people.

REID, Justice.

Defendant was convicted on trial before a judge of recorder's court without a jury on September 11, 1939, of the offense of breaking and entering a dwelling in the nighttime with intent to commit larceny therein. The offense was committed early in the morning of August 8, 1939. Defendant was sentenced September 21, 1939. Upon obtaining leave from this court, defendant appealed from his sentence.

Consideration of this appeal involves the following claims of the defendant:

1. That his attorney did not properly protect him and his interests on the trial;

2. That the attorney failed to object to the trial court's receiving in evidence the testimony as to confession before the establishment of a corpus delicti and before the proof of the voluntary nature of the confession.

After a showing that defendant had no means to employ counsel, attorney Donald A. Schindler was appointed by the court and he appeared and represented defendant during the trial, cross examined People's witnesses and examined defendant, who was sworn as a witness on his own behalf. Defendant claims that his attorney failed to defend him with diligence, wrongly advised him to waive a jury trial, and failed to make proper objection to testimony by officers as to the confession by defendant. The record indicates that defendant's rights were well protected so far as the services of his attorney were concerned.

Defendant claimed on his trial that just prior to his arrest he was taken ill after drinking intoxicants and because of illness lay down at a place across the alley from the residence in question but only about the width of two lots away, that he was awakened and roughly handled by police officers who found him there, that he was kicked and beaten by the officers in their attempt to extort a confession, and that he confessed the burglary by reason of the duress and maltreatment of the officers, and that because of their treatment he was in a condition which required that he be taken to a hospital before being locaked up.

James Ferguson testified that the house in question was his residence; that he left his house in July with the doors locked and windows closed, and that no person was authorized to enter the house; that on his return on August 9 he saw that some of his effects were gathered into a newspaper, the contents of dresser drawers were ransacked, and some packages had been changed around in the house.

Officer Belmer testified that on the morning of August 8, 1939, after receiving a report that the house in question had been broken into, he with five other officers went to the house, that he, Belmer, went to the unlocked front door, that he entered using a flashlight, and got inside the house in time to see a small man wearing a dark suit going out through the back window. The witness identified the defendant as the man he saw going out of the window. The witness further testified that a knife bearing the name of Mr. Ferguson was found among the personal effects taken from defendant.

Officer Trinity testified that he went with the other officers on the occasion in question and went to the rear door of the house while another officer went to...