Adams v. New York

In Adams v. New York, 192 U.S. 585 (1904), a state statute made it an offense "knowingly" to possess policy slips and provided that possession should be presumptive evidence "of possession thereof knowingly." The statutory presumption was sustained. Accidental and innocent possession of such a paper would be extraordinary and unusual and the statutory presumption was hardly needed to justify a jury in inferring knowledge of the character of the policy slip by one found in possession of it.