People v. Morris
| Decision Date | 04 December 1967 |
| Docket Number | No. 1,Docket No. 3205,1 |
| Citation | 155 N.W.2d 270,8 Mich.App. 688 |
| Parties | PEOPLE of the State of Michigan, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Nelson A. MORRIS, Defendant-Appellant |
| Court | Court of Appeal of Michigan — District of US |
George W. Schudlich, Detroit, Edward P. Echlin, Detroit, of counsel, for appellant.
Frank J. Kelley, Atty. Gen., Robert A. Derengoski, Sol. Gen., Lansing, William L Cahalan, Pros. Atty., Wayne County, Samuel J. Torina, Chief Appellate Lawyer, Wayne County, Thomas P. Smith, Asst. Pros. Atty., Wayne County, Detroit, for appellee.
Before FITZGERALD, P.J., and McGREGOR and LEVIN, JJ.
Defendant was arrested on complaint of a woman that he had encountered while both were walking in downtown Detroit. She had informed a policeman that defendant demanded a cigarette from her by saying, 'Give me a cigarette or you'll go down just like the building.' A building was being demolished nearby. Upon arrest, a straight razor was found concealed in his pocket.
He stated to complainant at the time of his arrest, 'You just better have the right man or I'm going to cut you up.' He subsequently told a police officer that he was merely carrying the razor to be sharpened and produced a bus transfer to show he intended to proceed to the barber shop. The trial judge concluded that he was carrying the razor as a weapon and he was convicted by the court of carrying a concealed weapon. C.L.1948, § 750.227 (Stat.Ann.1962, Rev. § 28.424).
Defendant raises 2 issues on appeal:
1) Is a straight razor a dangerous weapon within the contemplation, legislative intent and purview of the statute?
2) Was the judgment of the trial court clearly erroneous?
A straight razor, or any kind of razor, is not mentioned specifically in the statute. The relevant portion of the statute is, 'Any person who shall carry a dagger, dirk, stiletto or Other dangerous weapon.' C.L.1948, § 750.227 (Stat.Ann.1962, Rev. § 28.424). (Emphasis supplied.)
The question is, in a case of this nature, is the straight razor a dangerous weapon? The burden is on the prosecution to prove that the instrument was carried as a weapon, i.e., for either offensive or defensive purposes. The Supreme Court has defined "other dangerous weapon,' as used in section 227, to mean any concealed article or instrument which the carrier used, or carried for the purpose of using as a weapon for bodily assault or defense.' People v. Vaines (1945), 310 Mich. 500, 506, 17 N.W.2d 729, 731.
The following language from the same case is also relevant. It should be read substituting 'straight razor' for 'jackknife'.
'The legislature certainly did not intend to include as a dangerous weapon the ordinary type of jackknife commonly carried by many people, unless there was evidence establishing that it was used, or carried for the purpose of use, as a weapon.
'The knife carried by defendant was not a dangerous weapon Per se.'
In the case at bar, there is evidence to establish defendant was carrying it as a weapon: his statement to the complainant on the street and in front of a police officer. The prosecutor fulfilled his burden of introducing evidence to show the straight razor was being carried as a weapon.
The trial court was convinced that the straight razor was being carried as a weapon and that it was concealed on defendant. The defendant claims these conclusions were clearly erroneous.
That the razor was being carried as a weapon is borne out by the following dialogue during the trial in the testimony of the arresting officer:
'The Witness: And I called for a car. I shook the defendant down, and I found a razor in his right front pocket; and he had told Mrs. Kendricks that he was going to cut her up-- 'Mr. Arvan (defense counsel): Well, let me object to that, unless the officer was there.
'The Witness: I heard him say this in front of me.
'The Prosecution: That was in your presence?
'The Witness: That was in my presence.
'The Prosecution: He said he was going to cut her up. Did he qualify that any at all?
'The Witness: He said, 'You just better have the right man, or I'm going to cut...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
State v. Green
...concealed weapons statute in the absence of evidence that it was used or carried for use as a weapon. Compare People v. Morris, 8 Mich.App. 688, 155 N.W.2d 270 (Ct.App.1967) (circumstances indicated defendant intended to use a concealed straight There are a number of reported decisions rela......
-
People v. Jones
...N.W.2d 710; Shipley v. State (1966), 243 Md. 262, 220 A.2d 585; State v. Tate (Mo.1967), 416 S.W.2d 103. The case of People v. Morris (1967), 8 Mich.App. 688, 155 N.W.2d 270, supports the proposition that absolute invisibility is not required. This Court held in Morris that a straight razor......
-
State v. Howard
...razor is a dangerous weapon. See Williams v. Commonwealth, 304 Ky. 761, 202 S.W.2d 408, 409 (Ct.App.1947), and People v. Morris, 8 Mich.App. 688, 155 N.W.2d 270, 271 (Ct.App.1967). The court below indicated that the decision to grant defendant's motion to dismiss the indictment was based, i......
-
People v. Smith
...when the police entered.7 The defendant implicated himself in the 'carrying' of the concealed weapon in People v. Morris, 8 Mich.App. 688, 691, 155 N.W.2d 270, 271--272 (1967), and in People v. Moceri, 294 Mich. 483, 484, 293 N.W. 727, 728 (1940). The defendant was implicated by a co-defend......