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Criminal Law Keyed to Gershowitz
Massey v. United States
Citation:
320 A.2d 296.Facts
At about 3:00am, on November 30, 1972, Mrs. Waiter was in her residence when she heard knocking and hammering on a door. She looked out her back window and observed someone matching the defendant’s description kicking and pounding on a door of the nearby New Jersey Bar and Grill. She saw him stop for a while, run across the street, come back again, pound on the door some more and finally enter the building. She called the police.
When the police arrived, they noticed a splintered door. The officer then entered the storeroom area and saw someone back in that darkened area. He was asked to halt, but instead the figure disappeared into another room and footsteps were heard running up a stairway. The officer called for backup and he called for anyone in the building to come out. At this time, the defendant came down the stairs. He was only in his underwear and was rubbing his eyes. The defendant followed the officers upstairs, telling them that he was staying with Mr. Matthews, who resided over the bar and grill, and that he had heard nothing unusual. The search of the upstairs area revealed nothing of a suspicious nature and the officers returned to search the storeroom area. They noticed several clothes racks and saw that several items of clothing were folded and stacked on the floor.
Mr. Miller, the owner of the bar and grill, testified that the defendant frequented his establishment and that he had been there on the evening of November 29. He closed the establishment around 2:40 a.m. and offered the defendant a ride home. He drove him to a tourist home a few blocks away. Mr. Miller had not given the defendant permission to enter the premises after hours or to take the clothes off the rack.
The defendant testified that he had permission to enter the premises, that he had taken his shoes and coat off, left them downstairs, and then gone upstairs to sleep. His next recollection was being awakened by police with flashlights. He was found guilty of burglary. He appealed, arguing that the state failed to prove that he entered the building with an intent to steal.
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