State v. Emory
| Decision Date | 17 April 1922 |
| Docket Number | 25162 |
| Citation | 91 So. 659,151 La. 152 |
| Court | Louisiana Supreme Court |
| Parties | STATE v. EMORY |
Appeal from Criminal District Court, Parish of Orleans; N. E Humphrey, Judge.
Charles A. Emory was convicted of an offense, and he appeals.
Verdict and sentence annulled, and case remanded.
Chandler C. Luzenberg and A. D. Henriques, both of New Orleans, for appellant.
A. V Coco, Atty. Gen., and R. H. Marr, Dist. Atty., of New Orleans (T. S. Walmsley, of New Orleans, of counsel), for the State.
Appellant was convicted of the crime of having carnal knowledge of an unmarried woman or girl under the age of 18 years, and was sentenced to imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term of not less than 3 nor more than 4 years.
He presents four bills of exception, the first, second, and fourth of which refer to the same contention; that is, that the court's ruling on the subject deprived him of the benefit of the evidence of his good character or general reputation for morality and virtue. Bill No. 1 was reserved to a statement made by the judge, in the presence of the jury, while ruling upon an objection made by the prosecuting attorney. The substance of the judge's statement was that he did not see how the witness, who was then testifying to the good character or reputation of the defendant, could know his character or reputation, or say what other people thought of him, unless the witness had discussed his character or reputation, and knew from such discussion what other people thought of it. Bill No. 2 is of no importance. It was reserved to the overruling of an objection to a question propounded by the prosecuting attorney to a character witness on cross-examination. The question asked was whether the witness knew what defendant's conduct was at times when he, the witness, was not present. The witness did not answer the question. If he had answered, he would have said, of course, that he did not know what the conduct of the defendant had been in his absence. Bill No. 4 was reserved to the refusal of the judge to give the following special charge to the jury, viz.:
The charge requested is a literal quotation from Wharton's work on Criminal Evidence (10th Ed.) vol. 1 par. 57, and the doctrine has the approval of all text-writers on the subject, and of the courts generally. Wigmore on Evidence, vol. 2, p. 1961, § 1614; 22 C. J. 484. If the judge in this instance was unwilling to go so far as to put such evidence of good character or reputation in the superlative degree, he should have at least instructed the jury that the testimony of the witnesses who had testified to the good character or general reputation of the defendant, and who had been, by long-continued association with him and his friends and acquaintances, in a position where they would very likely have heard his character or reputation discussed if it had not been good, was worthy of consideration, notwithstanding the witnesses admitted that they had never heard the man's character or reputation discussed. If such evidence was not worthy of consideration, men and women in the most exalted position or station in society would be deprived of all means of proving, if an occasion should demand proof of, their general reputation for morality or virtue. Not one of the eight witnesses who testified to the good character or general reputation of the defendant in this case had ever heard his character or reputation discussed. The intimate acquaintance and association of each witness with the defendant, and with his friends and acquaintances generally, was such that, some if not all of them would very...
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State v. Frentz
... ... An assistant principal of the school (who had worked with the accused for an extended period of time) was not permitted earlier to testify as a character witness because he had never heard the accused's reputation discussed. Tr. 140-41 (Assignment 7). As stated in State v. Emory, 151 La. 152, 153, 91 So. 659, 660 (1922), in requiring an instruction to such effect: "The best evidence of good reputation is where the witness testifies that he has never heard it discussed, questioned, or talked about. The more unsullied and exalted the character is, the less likely is it ever ... ...
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State v. Harris
... ... The character referred to in the foregoing statute depends upon general reputation. LSA-R.S. 15:479. State v. Norphlis, 165 La. 893, 116 So. 374; State v. Emory, 151 La. 152, 91 So. 659; State v. Donelon, 45 La.Ann. 744, 12 So. 922. When the defendant has placed his character at [258 La. 726] issue, the State may rebut with testimony that his general reputation is bad. State v. Powell, 213 La. 811, 35 So.2d 741. But if the defendant does not place his ... ...
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State v. Pace
...which he has been living is evidence of good character and may go to the jury. State v. Warren, 138 La. 361, 70 So. 326; State v. Emory, 151 La. 152, 91 So. 659; State v. Ciaccio, 163 La. 563, 112 So. 486; State v. Todd, 173 La. 23, 136 So. 76. But it is not every error in the rulings of a ......
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State v. Caldwell, 48773
... ... This evidence was first offered to rebut appellant's evidence of good character and, for this purpose, it was clearly inadmissible. State v. Emory, 151 La. 152, 91 So. 659 and authorities there cited, and see also State v. Oliver, 247 La. 729, 174 So.2d 509. However, later on the State contended that the evidence was admissible to show intent and the judge so ruled. This ruling would be correct if appellant had offered evidence to show that ... ...