Brown v. State

Collins, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. This is an appeal from a conviction by the trial judge, without a jury, for unlawfully and knowingly permitting a certain room to be used as a place for selling lottery tickets on July 28, 1951. The question before this Court is whether the trial judge was clearly wrong under the evidence in finding the appellant guilty of the crime charged. The indictment also jointly charged one Washington Brailey with various violations of the lottery laws.

Officer John Livesay, called as a witness by the appellant, testified that he was detailed by Captain Emerson to make observations at the premises, 280 North Vincent Street, Baltimore. He observed about noon on July 26, 1951, five colored men and three colored women entered ■ the rear of the premises. About 12:45 P. M. a colored man got out of an automobile some distance away and entered in the rear of the premises by a back way. In a short time he returned to the car and another ²¹³ colored man approached him and gave him a brown paper bag which he opened and from which he opened and from which he removed “some yellow conventional lottery slips.” He looked at them, left the car, walked back and entered the premises, stayed there a few minutes, returned and left the vicinity.

About noon on July 27, 1951, he saw five colored men and two colored women, most of them being the same people he had observed on the previous day, go into the premises and remain only a few minutes each time. Most of them carred small brown paper bags. About 12:45 P.M. the same automobile driven by the same man drove up and parked in the same location as on the previous day. By the same route the driver entered the premises, carrying a brown bag.

He stayed a short time and left. During all of these observations he did not see the appellant, Norman Brown. The appellant did not testify. For the State, evidence was offered to show that on July 28, 1951, with a search warrant, Captain Emerson, accompanied by Officers Bradley and Snyder, entered the premises described, which was a dwelling house.

The front room was “a kind of living room with a lot of storage and junk piled up in the room”. The next room downstairs was a “sort of dining room” and kitchen. As the officers entered the front room, Washington Brailey threw something to the side of him where there was a fishing net. In the fishing net were found lottery books showing $40.30 played.

Brailey said that Norman Brown and himself and another person used the net that morning about four o’clock for fishing. In a stove on the north side of the front room were found two lottery tapes showing $59.59 played. In the dining room and kitchen on top of cans in the ice box was a new lottery book with no writing in it. Brailey said he did not know how they got there, that he knew nothing about them.

In Brailey’s bedroom on the second floor in a bureau drawer was found a lottery syndicate card. In Norman Brown’s room on the second floor were found some clips, a switch blade knife, and a few rubber ²¹⁴ bands. Also in this room were found some brown paper bags described by Captain Emerson as follows: “All of these brown paper bags, one of them has on it it was right down by the outboard motor that was lying there on the floor, and this one has ‘J.J.’ in red and all of them has different writings, this has got a lot of figures on it. This has 801 and H-u-k-h-e-s and it’s got 1409, it’s got 10G.

This one’s got ‘W.O.’ this has got Miss Dolores, 250. Part of an envelope with ‘B.S.’ 20, and Gilmor 7270 J.” The appellant was seen nowhere on the premises. Captain Emerson left word for the appellant to come to the police station. When he failed to appear a warrant was secured for him several days later.

Appellant admitted the ownership of the premises