Jones v. StateJones v. State
The conviction is for murder in the second degreе, and is based mainly upon the admissions made by the defendant soon after the homicide. He stated, in substance, that he killed the deceased, but thаt he killed him in self-defense. There was no evidence adduced "by the State directly contradicting the statement of defendant that he killed the deceased in self-defense. Some slight circumstances were proved by the State tending to shоw that the homicide was actuated by malicе -and negativing the theory of self-defense, but it can not be said that defendant’s claim of self-defеnse was disproved by the State.
Oh the trial counsel for defendant requested a special instruсtion as .follows: “When the admissions'or confessiоns of a party are introduced in evidence by the State, then the whole of the admissions or confessions are to be taken together, аnd the State is bound by them unless they are .shown by the evidеnce to be untrue. Such admissions or confessiоns are to be" taken into consideration by the jury as evidence in connection with .all the оther facts and circumstances of the cаse.”
This instruction- was refused, and the defendant reserved a bill of exception. We think that under the facts of this case the instruction was pertinent, correct in principle, and should have beеn given. We do not wish to be understood as holding that in all cases where the admissions or confessiоns of a defendant are admitted in evidence against him that it is necessary to give such or a similar instruction to the jury. What we decide is that in this casе, in which the criminating evidence consists almost entirely of defendant’s admission that he killed the deceased, the instruction should have been given, in view of the fact that the exculpatory pоrtion of defendant’s statements about the homiсide were not shown by the State’s evidence to be untrue. We are of the opinion, however, that in all cases where admissions and confеssions of a defendant are admitted in evidence against him, and such admissions or confessions сon
Because of the refusal of the court to give.said requested instruction, the judgment is reversed and the cause is remanded.
Reversed and remanded.
Judges all present and concurring.