People v. De Vries

Appellant was charged by information

with the crime of felony, to wit, violation of section 141 of the Motor Vehicle Act (Stats. 1923, p. 562). He was tried, convicted, and sentenced to serve six months in the Alameda County jail. He appeals from the judgment and from the order denying his motion for a new trial.

As grounds for reversal it is claimed that the verdict is contrary to the law and the evidence. It is further claimed that the district attorney was guilty of misconduct during the trial to the prejudice of appellant, and that the court erred in refusing to give certain requested instructions and likewise erred in the admission of certain evidence.

The record discloses the following facts: On the nineteenth day of January, 1924, between the hours of 8 and 9 o’clock in the evening, defendant, accompanied by his wife, who occupied the front seat with him, was driving his automobile along San Pablo Avenue in a southerly direction toward the city of Oakland. He had left his home in Berkeley with the intention of taking the ferry to San Francisco to attend the “Wampus Ball,” an entertainment given by certain moving picture concerns. The evening was dark, and the…