Commonwealth v. Deegan
Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court
Indictment in two counts. The first count alleged that the defendant, at Fall River, on April 7, 1884, in the night-time of said day, a certain building, to wit, the pigeon-house of Antoine Benard there situate, did break and enter, with intent to commit the crime of larcency therein, and, being so entered, five pigeons, each of the value of two dollars, of the goods and chattels of said Antoine Benard, then and there in the building aforesaid being found, feloniously did…
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Indictment in two counts. The first count alleged that the defendant, at Fall River, on April 7, 1884, in the night-time of said day, a certain building, to wit, the pigeon-house of Antoine Benard there situate, did break and enter, with intent to commit the crime of larcency therein, and, being so entered, five pigeons, each of the value of two dollars, of the goods and chattels of said Antoine Benard, then and there in the building aforesaid being found, feloniously did take, steal, and carry away, in the building aforesaid. The second count alleged a similar offence, on April, 15,1884, as…
1Opinion of the CourtField, J.
There was evidence under each count, that the pigeons had been stolen by some person, and the possession by the defendant was sufficiently recent to be evidence that he was the person who stole them, unless it was satisfactorily explained. The whole ruling asked for ought not, therefore, to have been given.
The defendant now insists that recent possession by the defendant is not evidence of the larceny, but only evidence that, if the larceny is otherwise proved, the defendant is the person who committed it. But this was not submitted to the court as a distinct proposition, and the court seems…
2Cited by6 opinions
- Commonwealth v. ChesterSuperior Court of Pennsylvania · 1921
- Commonwealth v. KelleyMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1955
- Commonwealth v. GraceMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1928
- Commonwealth v. TaylorMassachusetts Supreme Judicial Court · 1912
- Commonwealth v. RousseauMassachusetts Appeals Court · 2004
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