Bailey v. State

• Decision Date: 15 May 1902
• Citation: 133 Ala. 155,32 So. 57
• Parties: BAILEY v. STATE.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

32 So. 57

133 Ala. 155

BAILEY v. STATE.

Supreme Court of Alabama

May 15, 1902

Appeal from circuit court, Chilton county; N. D. Denson, Judge.

William Bailey was convicted of murder in the second degree, and appeals. Affirmed.

The appellant in this case, William Bailey, was indicted and tried for murder in the second degree for the killing of Joe Patton by shooting him with a gun, and was convicted of murder in the second degree, and sentenced to the penitentiary for 12 years. The facts of the case necessary to an understanding of the decision on the present appeal are sufficiently stated in the opinion. At the request of the solicitor the court gave to the jury the following written charge: "I charge you, gentlemen of the jury, if you believe the defendant is guilty, from the evidence, to a moral certainty, you must convict the defendant." The defendant duly excepted to the giving of this charge, and also separately excepted to the court's refusal to give among others, the following charge requested by him "That unless the jury are satisfied from the evidence beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant fired the gun with intention to kill a human being, they cannot find the defendant guilty of murder in the second degree."

William A. Collier, for appellant.

Chas G. Brown, Atty. Gen., for the State.

DOWDELL J.

Sam Glass, a witness for the state, testified on his direct examination that the killing of the deceased occurred on a Saturday night at a negro party or dance. This witness, after being cross-examined by the defense, upon further examination in rebuttal by the state was permitted to testify, against the objection of the defendant, "that there was a negro gathering there that night." It was competent to show in evidence all the facts and circumstances attending the killing. The facts which the evidence on the part of the state tended to establish rendered this evidence not only relevant, but very material. The defendant and deceased were both white men and friends, and the defense set up was that the shooting was accidental. The evidence on the part of the state tended to show a reckless firing of the gun by the defendant into a crowd of negroes, which resulted in killing the deceased, who was standing near the negroes. The evidence also tended to show that the defendant had had a difficulty that night with one of the negroes, and at the time he fired the gun said "there would be...