Watts v. Malatesta

The action is under section 994 of the Penal Law to recover money paid by plaintiff to defendant upon the event of prohibited wagers or bets. Plaintiff proved conclusively that on divers dates and occasions from April 28, 1928, to April 17,1930, he had paid defendant, a bookmaker, various sums of money aggregating $37,535 for wagers lost upon a series of horse races. The defendant adduced evidence which, it may be assumed, warranted a finding that during the same period defendant lost and paid to plaintiff like wagers aggregating a much larger sum. It was the contention of the defendant,…