176 Ky. 263 | Ky. Ct. App. | 1917
Opinion op the Court by
Affirming.
'Charging appellant ■with, having falsely and maliciously spoken to and published in the presence of Ebb Brown and others “that W. J. Drown stole your meat and flour,” appellee; in the trial before a jury recovered a verdict and judgment against appellant for five hundred ($500.00) dollars damages. Appellant is asking a reversal of that judgment on the following grounds:
First: That there was a variance between the words charged and those proven.
Second: That incompetent evidence was admitted for appellee over appellant’s objection; and
Third: That the instructions were prejudicially erroneous.
“Q. I will ask you if he (appellant) didn’t meet you in the road and shoot you with a shotgun because you told Uncle Bill Drown this? A. Yes, he did. Q. I will ask you to state if you haven’t known and didn’t know that they (two witnesses, Clarence Canter and Q-us Johnson) have been witnesses for Mib Pitman in several cases? A. Nearly- every case he has. ”
The witness was introduced for appellee and upon cross-examination was asked by counsel for appellant as to whether or not the feelings between him and appellant were friendly and the witness had said that they were not very pleasant at-that time. He was then asked if he did not have a row with appellant before he told appellee about the conversation, to which he answered “no,” and he was also asked if he had not made statements to. Clarence Canter and Grus Johnson, contrary to-his testimony, and he replied that he had not. The testimony objected to was brought out upon re-examination by attorney for the plaintiff and was in reference to these matters first brought out upon cross-examination by the attorney for the defendant, and defendant is in no position to object to these'questions and answers because they were but a cross-examination upon matters first introduced in the evidence by appellant. The first of the questions was asked evidently to explain the cause of the unkindly feelings existing at the time of trial between the witness and the defendant. This was certainly permissible after ap
Finding no prejudicial error in the record, the judgment is affirmed.