Sloan v. United States

• Decision Date: 19 March 1929
• Docket Number: No. 8267.,8267.
• Citation: 31 F.2d 902
• Parties: SLOAN v. UNITED STATES.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit

31 F.2d 902 (1929)

SLOAN v. UNITED STATES.

No. 8267.

Circuit Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit.

March 19, 1929.

Emil P. Rosenberger, of St. Louis, Mo., and Charles C. Madison, of Kansas City, Mo. (Ira B. Burns, of Kansas City, Mo., on the brief), for appellant.

S. M. Carmean, Asst. U. S. Atty., of Kansas City, Mo. (Roscoe C. Patterson, U. S. Atty., and W. L. Vandeventer, Asst. U. S. Atty., both of Kansas City, Mo., on the brief), for the United States.

Before STONE, LEWIS, and COTTERAL, Circuit Judges.

STONE, Circuit Judge.

Appellant was accused in an indictment containing three counts. The first count was eliminated by an order sustaining a plea of autrefois acquit. There was a verdict of acquittal on the second count. From a judgment of conviction on the third count, this appeal is brought.

The third count is as follows: "And the grand jurors of the United States aforesaid, impaneled, examined, sworn and charged as aforesaid, to inquire of and concerning crimes and offenses against the United States in the Western division of the Western district of Missouri, upon their oaths further present and charge that on or about the 1st day of December, 1926, and continuously thereafter, the said Silas E. Sloan, within the Western division of the Western district of Missouri, together with one L. E. Miller, whose true Christian name is to the grand jurors unknown, except as herein set forth, and who is herein named, but not presented or indicted, together with divers other persons whose names are to the grand jurors unknown did unlawfully, knowingly, willfully and feloniously confederate, combine, conspire and agree together among themselves, and with each other, to violate the provisions of section 151 of the Penal Code of the United States 18 USCA § 265, the same being an act of Congress making it an offense for any person, with intent to defraud, to pass, utter, publish or sell or attempt to pass, utter, publish or sell, or bring into the United States with intent to pass, publish, utter or sell, or keep in possession or conceal with like intent any falsely made, forged, counterfeited or altered obligation or other security of the United States, that is to say, the said Silas E. Sloan, L. E. Miller and divers other persons, whose names are to this grand jury unknown, did then and there unlawfully, willfully, knowingly and feloniously confederate, conspire, combine and agree together among themselves and with each other and with divers other persons to the grand jurors unknown, that the said Silas E. Sloan, L. E. Miller and divers other persons, whose names are to this grand jury unknown, would, in violation of section 151 of the Penal Code, engage in the business of unlawfully and feloniously passing, uttering, publishing, selling and attempting to pass, utter, publish and sell, and would keep in their possession and conceal, with intent to pass, publish, utter and sell, a large quantity of falsely made, forged and counterfeited obligations and securities of the United States, to wit, that they would unlawfully possess and conceal a large quantity of falsely made, forged and counterfeited Federal Reserve notes issued by the Treasury Department of the United States of America, which said notes would be in the similitude and likeness of genuine Federal Reserve notes issued as aforesaid with the intention of attempting to utter, publish and sell, and with the intention of uttering and selling the same to whomsoever would buy such falsely made, forged and counterfeited Federal Reserve notes, and the grand jurors aforesaid, do further present and charge that the said Silas E. Sloan and L. E. Miller did each and every act and each and every thing hereinafter specifically described and charged, and that each and every act hereinafter charged was an overt act performed in pursuance of and to effect the purpose and object of the said unlawful conspiracy, combination, confederation and agreement between the said Silas E. Sloan, L. E. Miller and divers other persons, whose names are to this grand jury unknown; that is to say, that on or about the 14th day of December, 1926, the said Silas E. Sloan furnished and provided a Ford coupé to bring the said L. E. Miller to Kansas City in the Western division of the Western district of Missouri, and did drive and operate said automobile from the said city of St. Louis, Missouri, to Kansas City, Missouri, for the purpose of enabling the said Silas E. Sloan and L. E. Miller to deliver to one Charles Marados a large quantity of falsely made, forged and counterfeit Federal Reserve notes of the denomination of twenty dollars ($20.00), which said falsely made, forged and counterfeit Federal Reserve notes were in the similitude and likeness of genuine Federal Reserve notes issued by the United States Treasury Department; that said overt act was done in pursuance of and to effect the object and purpose of the unlawful combination, confederation and conspiracy hereinbefore set forth, and the grand jurors aforesaid, upon their oath aforesaid, do further present and charge that on the said 14th day of December, 1926, in Kansas City, in the Western division of the Western district of Missouri, the said L. E. Miller went to the Lucetta Hotel at 417 East Twelfth street and recovered and obtained approximately eighty (80) falsely made, forged and counterfeit Federal Reserve notes purporting to have been issued by the Treasury Department of the United States, of the denomination of twenty dollars ($20.00) each, for the purpose and with the intention of delivering said falsely made, forged and counterfeit Federal Reserve notes to one Charles Marados; that said overt act was done and performed to further and effect the object of the unlawful conspiracy aforesaid, and the grand jurors aforesaid do further present and charge that on the said 14th day of December, 1926, the said Silas E. Sloan stationed himself at and near No. 800 Main street in Kansas City in the Western division of the Western district of Missouri for the purpose of observing and acting as a lookout to determine whether the place of Charles Marados at 800 Main street in Kansas City, Missouri, was being watched by officers of the law; and the grand jurors aforesaid, upon their oath aforesaid, do further say that on the said 14th day of December, 1926, said Silas E. Sloan accompanied the said L. E. Miller into the place of business of the said Charles Marados at said No. 800 Main street, for the purpose of selling and making delivery of the said eighty (80) falsely made, forged and counterfeit Federal Reserve notes to the said Charles Marados; that said acts were done and performed for the purpose of furthering and effecting the object of the unlawful conspiracy aforesaid, contrary to the form of the statute in such case made and provided and against the peace and dignity of the United States of America."

Appellant urges many grounds for...