Smelser v. State
Texas Supreme Court
Appeal from Brazoria. The case was tried before Hon. Benjamin Shropshire, one of the district judges. The defendant, John Smelaer, a white man, and Mary Ann Eraulis, a freed woman, were indicted under article 392 of the Criminal Code [Paschal’s Dig., Art. 2022] for living together in a state of fornication.
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Appeal from Brazoria. The case was tried before Hon. Benjamin Shropshire, one of the district judges. The defendant, John Smelaer, a white man, and Mary Ann Eraulis, a freed woman, were indicted under article 392 of the Criminal Code [Paschal’s Dig., Art. 2022] for living together in a state of fornication. The defendants pleaded not guilty, but they were convicted, and each fined $100. A motion for a new trial was overruled, and the case turned upon the sufficiency of the pfoof to convict. There was proof that the parties lived together in the same house, but occupied different rooms. There…
1Opinion of the CourtLindsay, J.
—The facts exhibited in the record of this case do not warrant the verdict of the jury. The judgment therefore is
Reversed.
2Cited by3 opinions
- McManus v. WallisTexas Supreme Court · 1880
- Childress v. StateCourt of Criminal Appeals of Texas · 1919
- Sleet v. StateCourt of Criminal Appeals of Texas · 1928