Hammons v. Commonwealth

SIMS, Justice. Appellant, Denver Hammons, was convicted of having intoxicating liquor in his possession in local option territory for the purpose of sale, and his punishment was fixed at a fine of $50 and imprisonment in jail for 30 days. On his motion for a new trial, as well as on his motion for an appeal in this court, he assigned three errors: 1. He was entitled to a directed verdict; 2. incompetent evidence was admitted to has prejudice; 3. the instructions did not give the whole law of the case. There is no contrariety in the facts. Police officers raided the apartment in which appellant lived in Corbin and found 24 half-pints of whiskey. Appellant operated a taxicab in Corbin and his driver was Odie Brewer. No question is raised as to the validity of the search warrant, and it was testified on the trial that a state policeman, in plain clothes, asked Brewer to get him some whiskey; that Brewer left his cab, went into the building through a door leading to appellant's apartment, and in two or three minutes returned with a half-pint of whiskey of the same brand found in appellant's apartment. There was proof that appellant's reputation was bad for unlawfully dealing in whiskey.