165 Ind. 180 | Ind. | 1905
Appellant was convicted of murder in tbe first degree, and bis punishment fixed at death.
It appears from tbe evidence that appellant and tbe deceased, bis wife, were living apart at tbe time of tbe killing, December 18, 1904. On tbe morning of that day-— Sunday—be purchased a revolver at a second-hand store on Indiana avenue, and went to tbe borne of Mrs. Jackson, a next-door neighbor of bis wife. Appellant went back to Mrs. Jackson’s in tbe afternoon, and while there bis wife
As was said by this court in Morrison v. State, supra: “If, for every transgression of the prosecuting attorney beyond the bounds of logical or strictly legal argument, the defendant could claim a new trial, few verdicts could stand, and the administration of criminal justice would become impracticable.”
It was said in Combs v. State, supra: “If every immaterial assertion or statement which creeps into an argument were to be held ground for reversal, courts would be so much occupied in criticising the addresses of advocates as to have little time for anything else. Common fairness requires that courts should ascribe to jurors ordinary intelligence, and not disregard their verdicts because counsel, during the
In the case of Pigg v. State (1896), 145 Ind. 560, 564, the court says: “The alleged misconduct of the assistant prosecuting attorney, of which complaint is made, occurred in his opening statement to the jury, in which he said: ‘The reason why murders are so frequent in Sullivan county is because life is held so cheap.’ The appellant objected to this language, and moved that the court set aside the submission of the cause and discharge the jury from its further consideration. The court sustained the objection to the remark, but overruled the motion to set aside the submission of the cause. The court also instructed the jury as to the objectionable language as follows: ‘Gentlemen of the jury, counsel have no right to refer to anything outside of this case, and you must not consider anything except such things as have reference to the case on trial, and counsel must not go outside the records in this case any more.’ We do not believe the appellant was materially prejudiced by the alleged improper language, the objection to which was thus sustained, and which was condemned by the court in the instruction given to the jury. ISTor do we think the impropriety of the language was so gross that its evil effects, if any, might not thus be corrected.”
If the prosecuting attorney was guilty of misconduct in said statement to the jury, as claimed by appellant, the instruction of the court directing the jury to disregard it and determine the case, upon the evidence and the law was sufficient to cure the same. Gillett, Crim. Law (2d ed.), §901; Norton v. State (1886), 106 Ind. 163, 169; Blume v. State (1900), 154 Ind. 343, 354-357, and cases cited; Epps v. State (1885), 102 Ind. 539, 550-552; Carter v. Carter (1885), 101 Ind. 450; Anderson v. State (1886), 104 Ind. 467, 475; Shular v. State (1886), 105 Ind. 289, 302, 55 Am. Rep. 211; Boyle v. State (1886), 105 Ind. 469, 480, 481, 55 Am. Rep. 218; Warner v. State (1886),
It is next insisted that “the verdict is contrary to the evidence, because there is no evidence of premeditation.” After a careful examination of the evidence, we are satisfied that the verdict of murder in the first degree was not contrary to the evidence.
Judgment affirmed.