Branch

Defendant appeals from a judgment of conviction of the crime of rape as defined by subdivision 1 of section 261 of the Penal Code of the state of California. He also appeals from an order denying his motion for a new trial.

Appellant’s first specification of prejudicial error is that, over defendant’s objection, the prosecuting witness was permitted to state that she knew what was meant by the expression “sexual intercourse,” and that her subsequent testimony with reference to the alleged acts of defendant was based upon such assumed knowledge. The reporter’s transcript of the proceedings had on the trial of the action shows that on the cross-examination of the prosecuting witness she stated that the matron of the detention home had told her the meaning of the expression under consideration. Although thereafter defendant had ample opportunity otherwise to test the knowledge of the witness, no attempt of any sort was made to do so. It must therefore be presumed that defendant was satisfied with the source of information of the prosecuting witness and as' a consequence that she had been correctly informed as to the significance of the words which she used. But aside therefrom, the…