Defendant Jack Cremer appeals his jury conviction of felony theft (K.S.A. 21-3701) claiming that the trial court improperly overruled his motion to dismiss (K.S.A. 22-3208) which challenged the sufficiеncy of the preliminary hearing.
Defendant was employed as the manager of a Quality Oil Company station in Topeka. On Monday, September 17, 1979, defendant’s supervisor, Verlon Cooper, received a call informing him that defendant had failed to open the service station for business. Cooper checked the сompany’s account at the Southwest State Bank and was informed that deposits for the weekend’s business had not been made. Virginia Pence, the company’s сomptroller, testified that after she learned of defendant’s unauthorized absence, she requested bank statements from the bank. Defense counsel objeсted to the introduction of Mr. Cooper’s testimony and the bank statements as hearsay, but the objections were overruled. The trial court found probable cause and bound the defendant over for trial.
Defendant subsequently filed a motion to dismiss which preserved the right to challenge the sufficiency of the preliminary hearing. K.S.A. 22-3208; State v. Weigel,
We first consider whether the hearsay evidence wаs admissible because it fell within the statutory exception of K.S.A. 60-460(m), business records, or K.S.A. 60-460(n), absence of entries in business records. K.S.A. 60-460(m) provides that evidence otherwise inadmissible as hearsay is admissible if it consists of the following:
“Writings offered as memoranda or records of acts, conditions or events to prove the facts stated thеrein, if the judge finds that they were made in the regular course of a business at or about the time of the act, condition or event recorded, and that the sources of information from which made and the method and circumstances of their preparation were such as to indicate their trustworthiness.”
The bank statements offеred here were made within the regular course of the bank’s business but no representative of the bank was present to testify concerning their preparation.
In State v. Guhl,
“In order to bring hearsay evidence within the business records exception of K.S.A. 60-460(m), a witness who can identify the report and explain methods and procedures used in its production must testify, establishing that the records were made in thе regular course of a business at or about the time of the act, condition or event recorded, and that the sources of information from which the records were made and the method of preparation indicate their trustworthiness.” [Emphasis added.]
The Guhl court distinguished the authority relied on by the State. Olathe Ready-Mix Co., Inc. v. Frazier,
The hearsay exception found in K.S.A. 60-460(n), which the trial court also cited in overruling defendant’s motion to dismiss,
“Evidence of the absence of a memorandum or record from the memoranda or records of a business of an asserted act, event or condition, to prove the non-оccurrence of the act or event, or the nonexistence of the condition, if the judge finds that it was the regular course of that business to make such memoranda of all such acts, events or conditions at the time thereof or within a reasonable time thereafter, and to preserve them.”
It is clear from the reading of this statute that its focus is upon, the business making the memorandum or record, which in this case is the bank. Since no foundation was laid concerning the record-keeрing practices of the bank, we conclude that the testimony of Mr. Cooper and the bank statements were hearsay evidence which did not fall within the excеptions of either K.S.A. 60-460(m) or K.S.A. 60-460(n):
We must next consider whether the hearsay evidence, although technically inadmissible, could be considered in determining the limited issues pertinent in a preliminary examination.
The purpose of the preliminary examination is not to determine the guilt or innocence of the accused; the magistrate need only decide whether a crime has been committed and whether there is probable cause to believe that the accused committed it. State v. Ramsey,
On January 1, 1964, the comprehensive codification of our code of civil procedure including the rules of evidеnce went into effect. Included within this enactment was K.S.A. 60-402 which provides that “[e]xcept to the extent to which they may be relaxed by other procedural rule or statute applicable to the specific situation, the rules set forth in this article shall apply in
A preliminary examination, likе the inquiry made by a magistrate before issuing an arrest or search warrant, is concerned with probabilities — not guilt. Hearsay statements in an affidavit may be relied upоn in issuing a search or arrest warrant so long as the affidavit includes sufficient affirmative allegations of fact as to the affiant’s personal knowledge to allow the magistrate to rationally reach an independent decision. State v. Marks,
In this case, there was reason to believe that in dll probability the bank statements and information repeated by Mr. Cooper were accurate and reliable even though hearsay. We conclude that the trial court did not err in permitting admission of these exhibits in the preliminary examination.
Affirmed.'
