Dake

People v. Dake

Good Law
185 Cal. App. 2d 525·1960 Cal. App. LEXIS 1534·8 Cal. Rptr. 283
Court of Appeal of CaliforniaOctober 20, 1960Crim. No. 3718California598 words

Opinion

Lead Opinion

Draper, J.

A jury found defendant guilty of robbery in the first degree and determined that she had been armed *526 with a deadly weapon. She appeals from order denying new trial and from the judgment.

The testimony of William Dake was admitted despite defendant’s claim of the husband-wife privilege (Pen. Code, § 1322; Code Civ. Proc., § 1881, subd. 1), because of the court’s finding that defendant’s marriage to Dake was void. She asserts that the evidence was insufficient to sustain this finding. Defendant and Mr. Dake went through a marriage ceremony February 14, 1957. Defendant herself testified that she had been married to Joseph Russo, that an action for dissolution of that marriage had been filed in Contra Costa County, and that the interlocutory decree therein "might have been” entered about August 2, 1956. A deputy county clerk of Contra Costa County brought into court the official file in a divorce action. The file is not in evidence, but the clerk testified that the parties to the action were Jose (later termed Joseph) Russo and Janice Russo. Interlocutory decree in that action was entered August 2, 1956. No final decree had been entered. It may reasonably be inferred that Mr.…

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