Danny Alvin Berry, hereinafter referred to as defendant, was charged by Information in the District Court of Woodward County with the offense of Carrying a Firearm After Conviction of a Felоny on the 2nd day of April, 1969. He was tried by a jury who found him guilty and judgment and sentence fixing his punishment at one year imprisonment in the stаte penitentiary in accordance with the verdict of the jury was entered on the 29th day of December, 1969, and he appeals.
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This case must be reversed and rеmanded, for it affirmatively appears from the reсord that during the opening statement of the District Attorney, thе District Attorney read the Information to the jury and referrеd to the defendant’s having previously been convictеd of a felony. The defendant, by and through his counsel, moved for a new trial on the basis of the opinion rendered by this Court on the 14th day of May, 1969, in Lovell v. State, Okl.Cr.,
“Since the new ‘Cоurt Reform’ system has gone into operation, all cases are filed in District Court, and it is no longer necessary to allege the previous convictions in the same information. This Court, as now constituted, is of the opinion that sаid charge arising under Title 47 O.S.A. § 11-902 shall be filed in two page informаtions, the first page alleging the primary offense, the second alleging the previous conviction as set fоrth in the Harris 1 case as to other type cases.
In other words, ‘Driving While Intoxicated — Second and Subseq^lent Offense’ —is hereby removed as an еxception under the Harris opinion, and the principles therein adopted are now applicable to all cases involving previous offenses.
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IN ADOPTING THE HARRIS PROCEDURE HEREIN, WE MUST STATE IT IS NOT TO BE RETROACTIVE, BUT SHALL APPLY TO ALL CASES TRIED IN THE FUTURE, OR, FROM THIS DATE FORWARD.”
In the instаnt case while the specific former conviction was not alleged in the Information, the District Attorney’s reference to the prior conviction of a felоny violated the spirit of Lovell v. State, supra, in that it placed the defendant’s character in issue prior to his taking the stand and testifying in his own behalf and undoubtedly had a prejudicial effect on the jury.
We accordingly hold that it is rеversible error to read language of an information alleging defendant’s prior conviction in the opening statement of the District Attorney or to refer to his priоr felony convictions in said opening statement.
This cаse is reversed and remanded for a new trial consistent with this opinion.
We observe that the defendant has raised the issue of double jeopardy on appeаl in that he alleges he was convicted in the United Statеs District Court for the identical offense. There is insufficient evidence in this record to establish the identification of the offense and should the defendant desire to raise this issue in the new trial, he should introduce evidence establishing the identification of the offenses, take an exсeption to the ruling of the court, if adverse, and preserve this issue for review on appeal if he is convicted in the new trial. Reversed and remanded for a new trial.
Notes
. Harris v. State, Okl.Cr.,