Commonwealth v. Owens

Opinion by

Mr. Justice Roberts,

It has been the law in the criminal courts of Pennsylvania that a defendant’s unexplained possession of recently stolen goods is sufficient proof of his guilt of the crime of receiving stolen goods. Although the statute defining that crime provides as an express element that the defendant knew or had reason to know that the goods in question had been stolen,1 it has been reasoned that such scienter may be presumed from evidence of mere possession. Commonwealth v. Pittman, 179 Pa. Superior Ct. 645, 118 A. 2d 214 (1955); Commonwealth v. Kaufman, 179 Pa. Superior…