People v. Campos

• Decision Date: 08 September 1960
• Docket Number: Cr. 6875
• Citation: 184 Cal.App.2d 489,7 Cal.Rptr. 513
• Court: California Court of Appeals Court of Appeals
• Parties: PEOPLE of the State of California, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Willie B. CAMPOS, Defendant and Appellant.

Page 513

7 Cal.Rptr. 513

184 Cal.App.2d 489

PEOPLE of the State of California, Plaintiff and Respondent, v. Willie B. CAMPOS, Defendant and Appellant.

Cr. 6875.

District Court of Appeal, Second District, Division, 1, California.

Sept. 8, 1960.

Hearing Denied Nov. 1, 1960.

Harry E. Weiss and Russell E. Parsons, Los Angeles, for appellant.

Stanley Mosk, Atty. Gen., and S. Clark Moore, Deputy Atty. Gen., for respondent.

WOOD, Presiding Justice.

Defendant was convicted, in a nonjury trial, of unlawfully possessing marijuana. He appeals from the judgment and sentence. His contention is that the arrest, search and seizure were unlawful, and that the court erred in receiving the marijuana in evidence.

Officer Virgin testified that on November 18, 1958, about 6:15 p. m., he saw defendant enter a cafe on South Main Street in Los Angeles; defendant stayed in there until approximately 7 p. m., when he left the cafe, crossed the street, and entered an automobile that was occupied by a woman and a child; after he entered the automobile, the officer (witness) and three other officers approached the defendant and asked him to get out of the automobile; defendant complied with the request; the witness asked him if his name was 'Willie Campos'; he replied, 'Yes'; when the witness asked defendant if he had any narcotics on him, he replied, 'No'; then the witness asked him if the officers might look; after saying, 'Go ahead,' he held his coat open; the officers searched him and found no narcotics on his person; they asked him if he had any stuff in the automobile; he replied, 'No'; then they asked him if they might look; he replied, 'Go ahead'; they searched the automobile and found a brown bag under the front seat, which bag was full of smaller brown bags; they showed the bag to defendant and asked him what it was; he replied, 'Marijuana'; then they arrested him; they had a conversation with defendant at the police station, about 8:30 p. m. on the day of the arrest, and that conversation was taperecorded; in that conversation defendant said that he had bought the marijuana that was found in the car and that the marijuana was his; he also said that he bought the marijuana at 12th and Central, and had paid $50 for six cans of it; he also said that his wife and child, who were in the automobile, did not know anything about the marijuana and they were not present when he picked it up; and he said that he had told his wife that this was 'just a robbery beef.'

On cross-examination, Officer Virgin testified that he was looking for 'a Willie Campos' that night; he was looking for 'a Willie Campos' who was involved with the federal authorities; he had a picture of Willie Campos with him at that time, and it was a picture of the defendant herein; he (witness) had read in a newspaper about a person by the name of Willie Campos, who was involved in a federal case and who lived on Paramount Boulevard; the 'Willie Campos,' who is defendant herein, also lived on that boulevard, but he is not the one who was involved in the federal case; the witness did not know until after the arrest herein, and until he had gone to a newspaper office and read the newspaper article again, that there were two persons by that name; prior to the time he re-read that article he assumed that this defendant was the other Willie Campos; he (witness) had no information about this particular defendant on the night of the arrest; he had no search warrant or warrant of arrest.

A chemist testified that the substance which was in the brown bag was marijuana.

When the prosecution offered the marijuana in evidence, the defendant made a motion to suppress the evidence on the ground that there was no probable cause for the arrest, and that the search of the automobile was illegal. Before the judge ruled on the motion, the defendant asked that he be permitted to give testimony regarding the matter of consent. Thereupon, the judge said that the ruling on the motion would be reserved until after further testimony had been received.

Defendant testified that on November 18, 1958, about 7 p. m., while he was getting into his car on Main Street, six officers approached his car; one of them asked him to get out of the car; defendant asked, 'What's all this about?'; an officer, after saying that defendant was under arrest, handcuffed him and searched him; another officer searched the car; defendant had not consented to the search of his car or his person. On cross-examination, he testified that an officer said, 'You're W. Campos, aren't you?'; he replied, 'Yes'; then the officer said that 'the fellows' had arrested defendant at the Compton Airport; then defendant started laughing, and said, 'You must be kidding'; the officers did not ask him if he had narcotics on his person.

The court denied the motion which had been made (motion to suppress evidence), and the marijuana was received in evidence.

Defendant testified further, on direct examination, that after an officer had searched the car he (officer) displayed a brown bag, and said, 'What's this?'; defendant replied, 'I don't know'; then defendant asked the officer to take him 'aside' (away from the car) so that defendant's wife could not hear; then defendant 'figured' and 'took it for granted' that when they showed him the bag 'that that was what it was,' and that a woman (not his wife) who had used his car had left the bag there; an officer asked defendant if he was going to let his wife take the rap; defendant re...