People v. Bloom — 248 N.Y. 582

Majority

p. 582

The People of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Max Bloom, Appellant.

Headnote

Crimes — policy — judgment convicting defendant of unlawfully and knowingly possessing policy slips reversed.

People v. Bloom, 222 App. Div. 451 , reversed.

(Submitted May 7, 1928;

decided May 29, 1928.)

Appeal, by permission, from a judgment of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court in the first judicial department, entered February 3, 1928, which affirmed a judgment of the Court of Special Sessions of the city of New York convicting the defendant of the crime of unlawfully and knowingly possessing policy slips in violation of section 974 of the Penal Law.

Hyman Bushel and Samuel Gottlieb for appellant.

Joab H. Banton, District Attorney (Archibald Firestone of counsel), for respondent.

Judgment of Appellate Division and that of Court of Special Sessions reversed and defendant discharged. Defendant is charged only with unlawfully and knowingly possessing policy slips: Held, that although the defendant’s gift enterprise constituted a lottery (Penal Law, § 1370), the certificates in his possession were not shown to be policy slips and defendant was not shown to be engaged in the game or scheme commonly known as policy.

Concur: Cardozo, Ch. J., Pound, Crane, Andrews and O’Brien, JJ. Not sitting: Lehman and Kellogg, J J.