Toney v. State

Toney was convicted of the theft of thirty-two chickens. His motion for new trial was overruled and he excepted. He was a produce merchant, who bought chickens all over the country, with a place of business in Atlanta. The chickens were found in his truck in Henry County, Georgia, the county in which the chickens had been stolen the night before.

If the evidence had stopped after the State proved the recent possession of the stolen goods, the jury would have been authorized, but not required, to convict. However, the defendant undertook to make a satisfactory explanation of this possession by…