Opinion

State v. Gatlin

  • 241 La. 321
  • 129 So. 2d 4
  • 1961 La. LEXIS 567
Court
Supreme Court of Louisiana
Filed
Apr 24, 1961
Status
Published
Author
Fournet
On the bench
McCaleb, Fournet, Hamiter, Hamlin
Cited by
51 cases

Overruled in part, on other grounds by State v. Liggett, 363 So. 2d 1184 (1978)

Later courts went against this

  • Overruled in part, on other grounds by State v. Liggett, 363 So. 2d 1184 (1978)

    See State v. Cade, 244 La. 534, 559, 153 So.2d 382, 391 (La. 1963); and State v. Gatlin, 241 La. 321, 333, 129 So.2d 4, 8 (La. 1961), overruled on other grounds, State v. Liggett, 363 So.2d 1184 (La.1978) and State v. Thompson, 366 So.2d 1291 (1978).
    Supreme Court of LouisianaOct 9, 19782 citing opinionsother groundsin partRead it
  • Overruled in part by State v. Thompson, 366 So. 2d 1291 (1978)

    To the extent that State v. Gatlin, supra, and our other decisions relying thereon suggest that by moving for a new trial a defendant waives his right to a judgment of acquittal on the basis of no evidence, they are overruled.
    Supreme Court of LouisianaNov 27, 1978in partRead it

The opinion

FOURNET, Chief Justice

(concurring).

I fully concur with the conclusion reached in the majority opinion that inasmuch as the state failed to offer in evidence any proof to establish that the sale of alcoholic beverages in the Eighth Ward of Washington Parish is prohibited by a police jury ordinance adopted pursuant to a local option election in the ward, an essential element of the crime with which the defendants are charged, the trial judge improperly overruled the motion filed on behalf of defendants for a directed verdict of acquittal, and that, consequently, the conviction and sentences were properly set aside and the defendants ordered discharged.

Having reached this conclusion, it is my opinion it was unnecessary for the majority opinion to consider the other bills of exceptions, which entailed the overruling of a well-established line of jurisprudence affecting adversely the guarantee against double jeopardy as contained in our national and state constitutions, simply because since the last opinion on this subject was handed down there has been a change in the personnel of the court which results in the majority now entertaining views to the contrary. This is all the more true since this issue was not determinative of the matter and the question was not squarely raised or given serious consideration by counsel in either oral or written argument.

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.

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