MCGINIS V. CALIFORNIA, 247 U. S. 95 (1918)
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Link to the Case Preview: http://supreme.justia.com/us/247/95/
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U.S. Supreme Court
McGinis v. California, 247 U.S. 95 (1918)
McGinis v. California
No. 134
Argued April 26, 1918
Decided May 20, 1918
247 U.S. 95
Syllabus
In a prosecution for having cocaine in possession in violation of a state law, it is a defense that the drug was in transit through the state to an adjacent foreign country, and defendants are entitled to prove such fact in the state court and therein to explain their relations to the shipment at the international boundary where they are charged with having taken the unlawful possession. McGinis v. California, ante, 247 U. S. 91.
Error in excluding such evidence held, in the circumstances of this case, not to have been made harmless by proof that more of the drug was added at the international boundary, where the whole prosecution was based upon the original shipment and such proof involved only one of the defendants, and cross-examination upon it was not allowed, and the source of the added drug was not shown.
Reversed.
The case is stated in the opinion.