Shivers v. The State Of Ga.

• Decision Date: 31 July 1874
• Citation: 53 Ga. 149
• Parties: Sidney C. Shivers, plaintiff in error. v. The State of Georgia,defendant in error.
• Court: Georgia Supreme Court

53 Ga. 149

Sidney C. Shivers, plaintiff in error. v. The State of Georgia, defendant in error.

Supreme Court of the State of Georgia

(Atlanta, July Term, 1874.)

Criminal law. Embezzlement. Evidence. Continuance. Before Judge Pottle. Hancock Superior Court. April Term, 1874.

*Shivers was indicted for the offense of embezzling $11,000 00, collected by him as tax collector for the county of Hancock, during the year 1871. He pleaded not guilty. When the case was called for trial, he moved for a continuance on the ground that the indictment had been found only two days previous thereto, and his counsel had been constantly engaged in the business of the court to the exclusion of any opportunity of making preparation in the case, or even of consulting with his client. The motion was overruled and defendant excepted.

It was shown by the prosecution that the defendant was the tax collector of Hancock county; that the state tax, assessed for the year 1871, on the taxable property of said county, was $11,000 00; that the defendant had collected various amounts from divers tax-payers during that year; that when the solicitor general, as agent for the comptroller general and treasurer of the state, demanded the $11,000 00 from him, he replied that he had collected and used the money and did not then have a dollar, but that "if they would give him a chance he would make it and pay it."

The solicitor general tendered in evidence the following papers:

"Hancock County, S. C. Shivers, Tax Collector:

                --------------------------------------------------------------
                |"To general and poll tax, 1871                   |$12,076 77|
                |-------------------------------------------------|----------|
                |"1873. January 8th, by general tax paid treasurer|284 05    |
                |-------------------------------------------------|----------|
                |" " poll " " "                                   |513 00    |
                --------------------------------------------------------------
                

"Office of the Comptroller General

"of the State of Georgia,

"Atlanta, Ga., January 24, 1874.

"I, W. L. Goldsmith, comptroller general of the state of Georgia, do hereby certify that the above and foregoing account of S. C. Shivers, tax collector of the county of Hancock, in said state, for the year 1871, is a full, true and complete exemplification taken from the books on file in this office, and there required to be kept by law, in which the accounts withsaid state, of all the tax collectors thereof, are kept and recorded *according to law; that said account is truly and correctly taken and copied from said books; that the same is a full, true and complete exemplification of all the accounts of said S. C. Shivers, with said state, as such tax collector, from the year 1871, up to the present date, as copied and taken from said books; that the balance of $11,279 72 due thereon, is unpaid, and that the amounts credited thereon, January 8th, 1873, were paid by L. L. Lamar, tax collector of said county.

"Given under my hand, official signature and seal of office, 24th day of January, 1874.

(Signed)

"W. L. Goldsmith,

"Comptroller General."

Also, certificate from the treasurer, in similar form to transcript from his books covering all payments into the treasury during the month of December, 1874, from whatever source, among which none appeared as having been made by the defendant.

This evidence was objected to, but was admitted by the court, and defendant excepted.

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