88 P. 418 | Idaho | 1907
Appellant was indicted by a grand jury of Washington county, charged with the murder of one Charles Macomb on the twenty-third day of December, 1905. A trial was had in February, 1906, which resulted in a verdict of manslaughter. He was thereafter sentenced to serve a term of seven years in the state penitentiary. A motion for a new trial was overruled and the appeal is from this order and also from the judgment.
Counsel for appellant assigns twenty-eight errors, many of which relate to the giving of instructions and the refusal to give instructions requested on behalf of defendants.
The first assignment relates to the refusal of the coiirt to quash the indictment on the ground that it was found by a grand jury under circumstances not authorized by law. It appears from the record that on the twenty-second day of January, 1906, the court then being in session in Washington county, the following order was made by the court: “It appearing to the court that a necessity exists therefor, the prosecuting attorney being engaged in other matters, the court orders that Bertram S. Yarian is appointed prosecuting attorney to attend upon and perform the duties of prosecuting attorney with the grand jury during this term of court at a compensation to be - fixed hereafter by the
It is insisted by the attorney general that State v. Corcoran, 7 Idaho, 220, 61 Pac. 1034, is decisive of this question. We think not. It is stated in the opinion by Mr. Justice Quarles that “the county attorney of said county [meaning Shoshone] stated in open court that -he was disqualified from
It is nowhere apparent by the record in this case that Mr. Rhea was in any way disqualified or ever requested the appointment of an assistant in the performance of his duties. The court is aware that there could be no valid objection to the appointment of Mr. Varían so far as his character or ability is or was concerned, but the question is: Did the statute authorize the appointment of anyone under the showing? The attorney general quotes from the opinion in State v. Corcoran, supra, as follows: “It would be an idle thing to provide that in the case of the disability of the county attorney to perform his duties, the court should appoint a suitable person to discharge his duties and then hold that such appointee has no authority to act in the performance of such duty. The reason, object and necessity of the grand jury having the services and assistance of the county attorney continues, notwithstanding that the county attorney is incapacitated from acting before the grand jury. .... It is evident that it was the intention of the legislature that where the county attorney was disqualified from acting in a certain case, the person appointed to perform his duties should discharge all of them. It follows that the indictment should not be set aside, because the substitute for the county attorney appointed by the court was before the grand jury during the examination of the witnesses.” We are in full accord with all that this quotation contains. The county attorney came into open court and stated that he was disqualified from acting in the matters growing out of the alleged riots; and it is apparent that the grand jury was' called to investigate any crimes that may have been committed at that time. It is further apparent that during the time Mr. Forney, who had been appointed by the court to discharge
The attorney general and his associates call our attention to State v. Bates, 148 Ind. 610, 48 N. E. 2. In this case it
In the case at bar the question is: Had the court the right' to appoint anyone to appear before the grand jury for any purpose, when the plain provisions of the statute require the county attorney, and'him alone, to appear before them when requested, and then only for certain purposes, when the only reason given is that the “county attorney was engaged in other matters”? We think not, and that the motion to quash should have been sustained.
Counsel for appellant next urges as error the manner of selecting the petit jury. It seems that the court ordered an open venire to issue to the sheriff for a given number to appear at a day fixed in the order, and that appellant’s counsel objected to this manner of securing a jury, and insisted on having the jury drawn from the jury-box made up by the county commissioners. He stated his reasons for the demand as bias and prejudice of the sheriff against appellant. If it were true that he could or did show bias and prejudice of the sheriff against the appellant, that officer should not have been permitted to serve the venire, nor should it have been served by anyone connected with his office. If the
Another error assigned is the ruling of the court on the objection to the service of the venire by the sheriff for the reason of alleged bias and prejudice on the part of that officer against appellant. We do not think the showing was sufficient to disqualify that officer from service of the process; however, the court discharged the jurors returned as served by the sheriff and ordered another venire to issue, and ordered it placed in the hands of one of the sheriff’s deputies. This was error; if the sheriff was disqualified,. the entire force of his office was disqualified. The assistant attorney general insisted in his oral argument in this court that the appellant, having accepted the jury by not exercising all of his peremptory challenges, cannot now be heard to complain that he did not have a fair and impartial jury, and hence a fair and impartial trial guaranteed to him by the constitu
Appellant’s assignments 6, 7, 8 and 9 relate to the cross-examination of state’s witness H. N. Macomb, brother of the deceased and joint proprietor of the saloon in which the homicide was committed. By a number of questions asked the witness by counsel for appellant to which objections were made by the prosecution and sustained by the court, it was sought to show the feeling of animosity and hatred, as stated by counsel for appellant, of the witness against appellant. The defendant in a criminal action has the undoubted right to show the feeling of any witness against him; this he may do by cross-examination as to his feeling or anything he may have said with reference to the accused. The jury should have the benefit of this information in order to determine the weight to be given to his evidence. (State v. Crea, 10 Idaho, 88, 76 Pac. 1013; People v. Gregory, 120 Cal. 16, 52 Pac. 43.)
The eleventh assignment relates to the cross-examination of Forest Gammett. On cross-examination he was asked, “What was the appearance between the two men as to whmh was the superior in power — fighting force?” Again, “Which man appeared to have the mastery, if either of them did, over the other?” To both of these questions the prosecution objected, for the reason that the same are incompetent and immaterial, which objections were sustained. The witness testified that he was pretty well acquainted with Charlie Macomb, and said, “I should judge that he was a man of about one hundred and eighty pounds, of eighty some odd.” These questions called for the conclusion of the witness. He could relate all the conditions and circumstances of the affray, and from that the jury could determine as to “which was the superior in power, fighting force”; also “which man appeared to have the mastery, if either of them did, over the other. ” It is shown by the record that the relative size, age and weight of both men was before the jury by the evidence of witnesses, and-if it was material, they were in possession of facts to determine the question without resort to the conclusion of a witness. We do not wish to be understood as holding that the defendant could not show
The twelfth assignment relates to the offer of proof by Dr. Youngblood of certain statements made to him or in his presence three days after the affray in the saloon. The prosecution objected to this evidence, for the reason that it was incompetent, irrelevant and immaterial, and because the proper foundation had not been laid. The objection was sustained. The witness had stated that deceased had told him all about how it started, explained how it started at the hall, the starting of the fuss; the question was then asked, “What statement, if any, did he make in regard to the defendant Barber being prosecuted?” We cannot see how this evidence could be competent. The statement of the deceased, unless a dying declaration, would not be admissible on the trial. We find no error in this ruling of the court.
Errors 13, 14 and 16 are discussed together, and relate to the offer by appellant of the evidence of Jim Blades, Riley Potter and C. T. Reavis, relative to certain alleged threats made by deceased toward appellant on the night and previous to the homicide. It is not pretended that these threats were communicated to appellant, but counsel for appellant insists that “where the homicide was committed in the course of an altercation, and accused pleads self-defense, threats by the deceased not communicated to defendant are admissible”; and in support of this contention cites State v. Cushing, 14 Wash. 527, 53 Am. St. Rep. 883, 45 Pac. 145; Babcock v. People, 13 Colo. 515, 22 Pac. 817; People v. Farley, 124 Cal. 594, 57 Pac. 571; State v. Tarter, 26 Or. 38, 37 Pac. 63. In State v. Cushing, supra, Mr. Justice Gordon, in his statements of the facts, says: “The appellant admits that he did the shooting which caused the death of the deceased, but claims that he did it in self-defense. The shooting occurred upon the premises of the appellant, near the city of Spokane. There were no eye-witnesses to the fatal encounter.”
Assignment 15 deals with an offer on behalf of appellant to show by the testimony of Fred Tinsley certain acts and statements of the witness- Newt. Macomb against defendant. It is not stated when those statements were made, and no showing that whatever they may have been they were communicated to appellant; hence inadmissible, and no error in this rejection.
Alleged error 17 is based on the refusal of the court to permit appellant while testifying to answer the following question: “Did -you go into the saloon that night for the purpose of bringing- on a fight between yourself and Charlie?” Prior to this question the witness had related what had happened at the dance given in the hall that night, conversations between himself, the deceased and others, and with reference to going into the saloon he had said: “At that time that I went into the saloon I did not anticipate any trouble with Charlie. When I fell into the window I thought it was necessary to defend myself at that time. The fight was not brought on by me in any way. ’ ’ It seems that the witness had been given an opportunity to relate all that happened on that night, both at the dance-hall prior to the affray and at the saloon. From his statements and the evidence of other witnesses the jury were to ascertain his motives in going to the saloon. He was permitted to relate all the facts and the jury should determine his motives. There was no error in this ruling.
Error 20 recites that after the case had been presented by the state and defendant, the prosecution called one Elmer E. Ransopher as a witness in rebuttal’, who was permitted over the objection of defendant to testify to all he saw and heard in the saloon during the affray. That the name of this witness was not indorsed on the indictment at the time he was called, nor was it ever indorsed thereon, neither did the prosecution request that it should be so indorsed on the ■indictment; that counsel for appellant objected to the witness’ testifying for the reason above set forth, and called the court’s attention to the fact that his name was not upon the indictment. Section 7668 of the Revised Statutes provides: “When an indictment is found, the names of the witnesses examined before the grand jury, or whose depositions may have been read before them, must be inserted at the foot of the indictment, or indorsed thereon, before it is presented to the court.” We think this provision of our statute is mandatory, and should be enforced at all times in prosecutions either by indictment or information. When a party charged with crime is upon trial, he has a right to know who the witnesses are against him, and if during the trial the prosecution obtained information that another witness or other witnesses are essential to a successful prosecution, he should be required by the court to show where he obtained the information, and if the showing is sufficient, then the court should order the name or names placed on the indictment or information without delay. It was error to permit this witness to testify without his name being placed on the indictment. The rule here laid down as to the indorsement of names of witnesses on an indictment also applies to in-formations. Section 2 of “An act to provide for prosecut
A number of errors are assigned based on instructions given and the refusal of the court to give certain ones requested by appellant’s counsel. We have examined the instructions given by the court and think they fairly state the law. It is not error to give instructions requested by a defendant, nor is it error to refuse to give them when the court has instructed on all the issues involved and such instructions fairly state the law of the case.