Torres v. People, 19736
| Decision Date | 19 February 1962 |
| Docket Number | No. 19736,19736 |
| Citation | 369 P.2d 80,149 Colo. 314 |
| Parties | Lupe TORRES, Plaintiff in Error, v. PEOPLE of the State of Colorado, Defendant in Error. |
| Court | Colorado Supreme Court |
W. C. Kettelkamp, Jr., Pueblo, for plaintiff in error.
Duke W. Dunbar, Atty. Gen., Frank E. Hickey, Deputy Atty. Gen., J. F. Brauer, Asst. Atty. Gen., for defendant in error.
Lupe Torres and Leroy Martinez were jointly charged in a three count information with the crimes of burglary, larceny, and conspiracy to commit burglary and larceny. A jury found both defendants guilty on all counts and they were sentenced to terms in the state penitentiary.
Torres is here by writ of error seeking reversal. He makes no claim that the verdict is not supported by the evidence, but urges as grounds for reversal alleged errors in the trial of such nature as to preclude a fair trial as provided by law.
Defendant assigns error under the following designations:
1. Improper remarks by a witness.
2. Error in permitting a witness to testify about stolen TV sets in the absence of their presence in court.
3. Improper conduct of juror.
Under his first assignment, defendant claims that the trial court erred in not granting his motion for mistrial following certain remarks of the Chief of Police of Pueblo, made during his testimony as a witness for the people.
On questioning by the district attorney, the witness had testified that he knew both defendants and further stated that Martinez was commonly known as 'Pineapple.' Counsel for Torres objected to this embellishment of Martinez. The court instructed the jury to disregard the remark.
Defendant has cited no rule of law, and we know of none, that would allow one codefendant to obtain a new trial because of alleged prejudice to another codefendant who seeks no redress either here or in the trial court.
Under this same assignment, defendant alleges that the court again erred in not granting his motion for mistrial because of the following remark by the same witness when detailing the confession of the defendant:
'Then he said, 'Then the two of us went in my car to Juarez, Old Mexico,' He said some cab driver furnished his wife to him for a fee.'
This court has repeatedly held that all parts of a pre-trial confession, even if they refer to other crimes, are admissible in evidence. McRae v. People, 131 Colo. 305, 281 P.2d 153. The officer did no more than quote words that came from the lips of the defendant himself.
Under his second assignment, defendant urges that the trial court erred in permitting one Mathews, a police officer, to identify certain recovered TV sets, without introducing them in evidence, explaining their absence, or linking them with defendant. In addition to proving its case through the voluntary confession of defendant, the prosecution made out a case of circumstantial evidence. Five TV...
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