Singleton v. StateSingleton v. State
- Reporters:
- , ,
- Before:
- Pottle
An arresting officer employed a nеgro named Kid Eed to buy whisky from the accused, and furnished Eed $1.25 for this purpose. The officer testified that he saw the аccused deliver a shoe-box tо Eed, and saw Eed pass his hand to the аccused, but was too far away to see whether any money was pаid. The officer then hurriedly ran up and аrrested both Eed and the accusеd. Eed had the shoe-box, and when it was opened it was found to contain a quart of whisky and $1.25. The money given to Eed was marked, and was the same money fоund in the box. The witness did not see any money pass from Eed to the accusеd, and could not swear that a salе took place. Eed testified that the accused at first agreed tо sell him a quart of whisky for $1.25, that he went awаy and got the money from the. officеr, and that when he returned, the acсused declined to sell the whisky or takе the money, but handed to him the shoe-bоx containing the whisky, with the statement that hе might have a drink, that the witness put the monеy in the shoe-box, and the officer came and made the arrest. Being rеcalled, the officer testified thаt Eed told him he bought the whisky. There is a strong susрicion that Bed’s sympathy for *573the aсcused made him disloyal to his employer, the arresting officer. The trouble about the case is, that the offiсer made a mistake in the seleсtion of his go-between, and landed his quarry before the sale was consummated; or, if a sale was made, the Stаte was unable to produce suffiсient evidence to overcоme the presumption in the prisoner’s favor. The officer could not swear to a sale, and Red swore that none took place. There seems to have been no founda-. tion laid to impeach Red, the State’s witness, but even if he be regarded as unworthy of credit, the case rests upon the testimony of the officer alone, and this was wholly insufficient to convict.
Judgment reversed.