Robbins v. People

Citations

• 95 Ill. 175
• 1880 Ill. LEXIS 164

Syllabus

<p>1. Criminal law—-former conviction under another jurisdiction. Where an ordinance of a city, which prohibits the keeping of a gaming house, prescribes as the penalty for the offence a fine of $26, a conviction under the ordinance will not operate as a bar to a subsequent prosecution by indictment for the same offence, for the reason that the penalty imposed by the ordinance is very much less than that prescribed in the statute. While effect has been allowed to ordinances which imposed greater penalties than those prescribed by the general law of the State for the same offence, that will not be done where an ordinance imposes a lesser penalty than the statute.</p> <p>2. Evidence—one fact inferred from proof of another. It is not always necessary that every fact essential to sustain a finding shall be testified to by witnesses. Evidence of a fact may be derived from inference, although there be no positive statement of its existence. Jurors bring to bear upon testimony their common observation and general knowledge, and in the light thereof, and as men conversant with affairs, they pass upon the evidence in a case, drawing the inferences from it, which, as such judges of the facts, they properly may do.</p> <p>3. So, under an indictment for keeping “ a common gaming house,” it was proven that the defendant was seen frequently in certain rooms and was there dealing the cards at the game of faro; that the rooms were kept and used as common gambling rooms, in which were the implements of gambling, and that the rooms were fitted up for gambling rooms. It was also proven that the defendant had charge of the rooms, and whenever any questions arose about the games being played there, all disputes were referred to him for settlement. It was held, if it were necessary to a conviction that it should appear there was gambling in the rooms “for money or other valuable thing,” that fact might be inferred from the other facts proven, without being itself established directly by