People v. Settles

Defendants were convicted on a charge of running a lottery, and they appeal. They were not the proprietors of the place where the acts forming the basis of the charge were committed, but merely employees. They rest their defense in part on the fact that the proprietors had a license from the city of Los Angeles to operate the particular game found by the jury to be a lottery. They testified that they knew of this license and in reliance on it supposed the game to be lawful. Hence, it is argued, they had no criminal intent. The license above mentioned was issued under a Los Angeles city…