45 Fla. 110 | Fla. | 1903
The plaintiff in error was indicted, fried and convicted of the crime of forgery in the Circuit Court of Walton county, and seeks reversal here of the judgment and sentence pronounced by writ, of error.
The indictment upon which he was tried is as follows: ‘•'In the name and by the authority of the State of Florida.
. in the Circuit Court of the First Judicial Circuit of the State of Florida, for Walton county, at the Spring term thereof, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and one, Walton county, to.-wit: The grand jurors of the State of Florida, enquiring in and for the body of the county of Walton, upon their oaths do present that one William Turnipseed, late of the county of Walton aforesaid, in the Circuit and State aforesaid, on the '1st day of March, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and one, at and in the county of Walton, aforesaid, then and there being and then and there having in his possession a certain 'writing obligatory, which writing obligatory was then and there in words
Agreed to this 16th of Feb. 1901.
M.„. M. OWENS,'
W. D. TURNIPSEED.’
He, the said William Turnipseed, then' and there having said writing obligatory in his possession, did then and there in Walton county, State of Florida, on the 1st day of March, A. 1). 1901, feloniously make, alter forge and counterfeit the said writing obligatory by them and there falsely obliterating and defacing the words ‘with the exception of six day swork, in said writing obligatory, and inserting therein in place of the words ‘with the exception of six days work’ the words ‘labor or material furnished by W. D. Turnipseed’ which said writing obligatory, as falsely forged and altered, was then in words and figures as follows, to-wit: ‘I, M. M. Owens, do lease unto \V. I). Turnipseed my mother’s farm in the county of Walton, State of Florida, situated on .White creek near the valley church, for a term of three years commencing Jany. 1st, 1901, for the sum of $150.00 or its equivalent, to he paid as follows: Four thousand' (4000) good rails are io he split and put up the first year by W. D. Turnip-
Agreed to this 16th of Feb. 1901.
M. M. OWENS,
W. D. TURNIPSEED,
with intent then and there to injure and defraud the said M. M. Owens, against the form of the statute in such cases made and provided, to the evil example of all others in like case offending, and against the-peace and dignity of the State of Florida.”
The defendant moved to quash this indictment upon the following grounds: 1st. The indictment charges no offense against the laws of the State of Florida.
2nd. It was not alleged that the instrument was falsely made or altered.
3rd. Because the indictment is vague, indefinite and uncertain.
4th. It does not allege that the instrument was made or altered with intent to injure or defraud the owner of the property.
This motion was denied, and its denial, is assigned as error.
After verdict the defendant also moved in arrest of judgment on the following ground: 1. That said indictment does not charge that said alteration was “falsely made” as the statute provides. This motion was also overruled, and such ruling is assigned as error.
As these two assignments both invole the same ques-ti»n, viz: ' The sufficiency of the indictment, they will be discussed together. The indictment charges that the
It is next contended that the alteration alleged to have-been made in the instrument forged was immaterial, and really effected no substantial change in any of the obliga
For the error found the judgment of the court below is reversed with directions to quash the indictment and to discharge the defendant, at the cost of the defendant in error.