Harold General Wade v. United States

Appellant, Harold General Wade, challenges his conviction under 18 U.S.C. § 1708 , mail theft. He argues that the detention and arrest which preceded his conviction were unlawful; he further argues that the evidence presented against him in the court below was insufficient to establish possession of checks stolen from the mail. Since we find these contentions without merit, we affirm the conviction.

I. The Detention

This Court has repeatedly held that an officer may “detain” an individual in order to conduct a limited investigative inquiry if the officer has “reasonable grounds” for such action; the officer has “reasonable grounds” if there is “a founded suspicion . . ., some basis from which the court can determine that the detention was not arbitrary or harassing.” Wilson v. Porter, 361 F.2d 412, 415 (9th Cir. 1966).

These are the facts which led the police officers to “detain” Wade: In the early afternoon, the police received a complaint that a male negro had attempted to molest some children in a pedestrian tunnel which was located at approximately 17th Street and Washington Boulevard in Los Angeles; immediately upon receiving the complaint, two Los Angeles police officers…