State v. Bell

The respondent, Dr. William M. Bell, was convicted of two counts of unlawfully selling dangerous drugs. The majority of a panel of the Court of Appeals reversed the trial court upon the basis of an inappropriate jury instruction. State v. Bell, 8 Wn. App. 670, 508 P.2d 1398 (1973). The state, as a matter of right pursuant to ROA II-2, appeals that decision.

Dr. Bell, at the time of his arrest, conducted his practice as an osteopathic physician in Seattle. On March 1, 1971, two police officers in street dress visited his office and asked for diet pills by the trade name Bamadex. The officers…