176 Ga. 637 | Ga. | 1933
Lead Opinion
(After stating the foregoing facts.) The plaintiff in error, variously called Styles, Lee, or Compton, was jointly indicted with George W. Cox Jr., and Harry Kosnofsky, for the murder of Bennie Lichtenstein. Lichtenstein resided in an apartment on Ponce de Leon Avenue in the City of Atlanta. On the night of the homicide he was seen to enter his apartment, and shortly thereafter two of his acquaintances who occupied apartments in the same building heard three cries for help, and one pistol shot. They ran to Lichtenstein’s apartment and found that he was dead with a bullet wound which entered on the right side and came out on the left side of his head. He was unclothed except with a nightshirt.
The defendant was arrested on Thursday following the killing on the Monday night preceding. The information which led to his arrest was given by a witness named Daley, who testified lie had lost $375 in money, a pistol, a diamond stick-pin, and an automobile by being robbed several months before by -the accused, Lee. Daley told Lieutenant Sturdivant where he had an engagement to meet Lee, so that Sturdivant would be near by and make the arrest. It was later developed in the evidence that Daley, after Studivant had
The fact that Holland and Mauldin testified that the defendant stated that he wanted to make a confession to Sturdivant was nothing, more than an expression of intention to confess; that is, to admit everything sufficient to prove his guilt of the offense as charged. The fact that he said he wanted to confess is not an admission relating to the commission of the crime, until the confession is actually made, of - a single inculpatory circumstance prior to the commission of the crime of murdering Bennie Lichtenstein, nor an ad
In this state of the proof as to conspiracy, the charge to which exception was taken in ground 24 of the motion was such error as
Judgment reversed.
Concurrence Opinion
concurring specially. In my opinion, there is scarcely any right more precious than that accorded to a defendant in a criminal trial, who is presumed to be innocent and who may sometimes be innocent, than that of subjecting the witnesses against him to a cross-examination “thorough and sifting.” In this case the learned trial judge sustained an objection to the question, “Don’t you know that Bennie Lichtenstein carried $40,000 double-indemnity policy ?” after inquiring: “What is the relevancy ?” and refused to allow the question to be answered. With a profound and deep respect for the intelligence, ability, and absolute integrity of the judge, I can not concur in the opinion that mere irrelevancy is a standard by which the right of cross-examination may be abridged or limited. The purpose of a cross-examination is to sil't the wit