HENDERSON, J., delivered the opinion of the Court.
The appellant was tried and convicted of carrying a concealed dangerous or deadly weapon and sentenced to two years' imprisonment, the maximum sentence under Code (1957), Art. 27, sec. 36. He was represented by counsel of his own selection, pleaded not guilty, and elected a court trial. In this appeal, where he is represented by court-appointed counsel, he challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to convict and particularly the evidence to establish venue. He further contends that the court erred in hearing his motion for new trial in the absence of defense counsel.
We find no insufficiency in the evidence. Two Baltimore County policemen, on duty in a car, were ordered to proceed to the Teen Age Center at the Arbutus Elementary School to investigate a report of a disturbance there and that "[a] man was suspected of having a gun." They testified that they saw the accused drop a pistol on the ground at the parking lot of the Arbutus Elementary School just prior to his arrest. The witness, Covill, adult counsellor at the Center, testified he saw the accused take the pistol from his pocket before he dropped it. The pistol was picked up by one of the officers and found to be loaded. The appellant testified that the pistol belonged to one of the boys, seventeen years old, whom he had accompanied to the Center as a peacemaker in a previous fight with other boys. The trial court believed the testimony of the witnesses for the State and did not believe the testimony of the accused denying ownership or possession of the pistol or the testimony of other defense witnesses to the same effect. We cannot find that the trial court was clearly wrong.
The claim that venue was not established rests upon a certain ambiguity in Covill's answer to a question whether the
After the trial court announced the verdict of guilty on January 29, 1960, counsel for the accused, Mr. Hurwitz, asked the court to "withhold sentence upon the request of my client for the purpose of filing a motion for a new trial". It seems to be a fair inference that the appellant's trial counsel was merely keeping the door open for his client to file the motion himself but did not propose to file it for him. The appellant was a mature man not unfamiliar with court procedure. He had a long record of criminal convictions over a period of some fifteen years and had served time in the Federal prisons at Atlanta and Alcatraz. There is no suggestion that he was mentally incompetent to make the arguments at the hearing of the motion in proper person. The court complied with this request of counsel, remanding the appellant to the Baltimore County Jail pending a hearing of the motion. On February 2, the appellant filed a motion for new trial in proper person. The record shows that on February 26, the court passed an order committing the appellant to Spring Grove State Hospital
In the appellant's statement as to the "reasons for the appeal", he complained that the trial court "sent me to Spring Grove State Hospital for observation to see if I was insane. Which four (4) Psychiatrists said that I was sane, * * *. The head Psychiatrist notified his Hon. that I was sane also." He complained of his treatment at the Hospital. Obviously, these are matters not reviewable on this appeal.
He also claimed that the trial court "failed to render me my constitutional rights to have my attorney present at the trial on March 22nd, 1960. And also failed to allow me time to notify my attorney before the trial." The reference is obviously to the hearing upon the motion for a new trial, at which the appellant states that he was present in person. We have already noted the inference that Mr. Hurwitz had severed his connection with the case upon the conclusion of the original trial and before the filing of the motion, and we further infer that this is the reason why he was not present at the hearing of the motion and why he was not notified of it (assuming the appellant's statements as to these matters to be correct). There is nothing in the record to show that the appellant requested the trial court to notify Mr. Hurwitz to be present, or to continue the case to enable him to obtain new
On the record before us, we do not reach any constitutional question as to the right of the appellant to have counsel at the argument of his motion for a new trial.
Judgment affirmed.
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