Donley v. State
| Citation | 33 S.E.2d 925,72 Ga.App. 429 |
| Decision Date | 28 April 1945 |
| Docket Number | 30778. |
| Parties | DONLEY v. STATE. |
| Court | United States Court of Appeals (Georgia) |
Casemaker Note: Portions of this opinion were specifically rejected by a later court in 171 Ga.App. 392.
Casemaker Note: Portions of this opinion were specifically rejected by a later court in 319 S.E.2d 542
Casemaker Note: Portions of this opinion were specifically rejected by a later court in 340 S.E.2d 30
Syllabus by the Court.
Where the answer of a witness is that the defendant was under the influence of intoxicating liquor, the jury is authorized to say that since the observed matter in issue can not be so fully and accurately described as to put the jury completely in the place of the testifying witness, thus enabling the jurors to draw the inference equally as well as the witness they may determine the condition of the defendant from the direct testimony of the witness who observed him, rather than from a subsequent description of his conduct by the witness.
Lowrey Stone, of Blakely, for plaintiff in error.
Horace Bell, Sol., of Blakely, for defendant in error.
The evidence authorized the verdict finding the defendant guilty of driving an automobile while under the influence of intoxicating liquor. The evidence for the State was as follows: The defendant in his statement to the jury denied his guilt. Under the defendant's statement the jury would have been authorized to acquit him. However, they accepted the evidence for the state and convicted him.
It was competent for the witness to testify that the defendant was under the influence of intoxicating liquor. Where the deputy sheriff, a witness who had an opportunity to observe and did observe the defendant, testified that the defendant was under the influence of intoxicating liquor, this was a statement of fact actually observed by the witness at the time as evidenced by the defendant's conduct and appearance. Johnson v. State, 69 Ga.App. 377, 25 S.E.2d 584. In Guedon v. Rooney, 160 Or. 621(7), 87 P.2d 209, 120 A.L.R. 1298, it is said: 'A witness who satisfactorily shows that he had opportunity to observe and did observe a person's condition may state whether such person was intoxicated and the extent of such intoxication, and whether that person had been drinking or was just recovering from a state of drunkenness, since the facts can not be presented or depicted to the jury precisely as they appeared to the witness and it is impracticable for him, from the nature of the subject, to relate the facts without supplementing their description with his conclusions.' It is error to...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Meeks v. Lunsford
...proper foundation has been laid to show the basis for such testimony (Andrews v. State, 102 Ga.App. 423, 116 S.E.2d 345; Donley v. State, 72 Ga.App. 429, 33 S.E.2d 925; Grier v. State, 72 Ga.App. 633(2), 34 S.E.2d 642, supra; Joiner v. State, 51 Ga.App. 463, 180 S.E. 911; Cavender v. State,......
-
Wilson v. State, 69622
...Those cases supporting the latter position ("as a fact") are Johnson v. State, 69 Ga.App. 377, 25 S.E.2d 584 (1943); Donley v. State, 72 Ga.App. 429, 33 S.E.2d 925 (1945); Wells v. State, 110 Ga.App. 507, 139 S.E.2d 151 (1964); Garrett v. State, 146 Ga.App. 610, 247 S.E.2d 136 (1978). This ......
-
Jordan v. Scherffius, 45154
...Ga. 65; Hook v. Stovall, Dunn & Co., 26 Ga. 704(6). But compare Johnson v. State, 69 Ga.App. 377(1), 25 S.E.2d 584 and Donley v. State, 72 Ga.App. 429, 430, 33 S.E.2d 925, holding that a witness states a fact rather than an opinion when he testifies that a defendant was under the influence ......
-
Fountain v. Smith, 38575
...appeared to the witness. Hinson v. State, 88 Ga.App. 318, 77 S.E.2d 63; Grier v. State, 72 Ga.App. 633, 34 S.E.2d 642; Donley v. State, 72 Ga.App. 429, 33 S.E.2d 925. Furthermore, in the instant case the record reveals that the witnesses did testify as to facts on which they based their opi......