State v. Logner, 744

• Decision Date: 14 January 1966
• Docket Number: No. 744,744
• Citation: 145 S.E.2d 867,266 N.C. 238
• Parties: STATE of North Carolina v. Louis Anthony LOGNER.
• Court: North Carolina Supreme Court

Page 867

145 S.E.2d 867

266 N.C. 238

STATE of North Carolina v. Louis Anthony LOGNER.

No. 744.

Supreme Court of North Carolina.

Jan. 14, 1966.

Atty. Gen. T. W. Bruton and Andrew A. Vanore, Jr., Staff Atty., Raleigh, for the State.

Nicholas Galifianakis, Durham, for defendant appellant.

SHARP, Justice:

Defendant contends (1) that his intoxication on November 18th and 19th rendered any statements he may have made to the officers involuntary; and (2) that, if the officers advised him of his constitutional rights, his intoxicated condition made such advice entirely ineffectual.

This Court has considered a defendant's plea of drunkenness as a bar to the admissiblity of his confession in the following cases: State v. Painter, 265 N.C. 277, 144 S.E.2d 6; State v. Stephens, 262 N.C. 45, 136 S.E.2d 209; State v. Isom, 243 N.C. 164, 90 S.E.2d 237, 69 A.L.R.2d 358. From them this rule emerges: Unless a defendant's intoxication amounts to maina--that is, unless he is so drunk as to be unconscious of the meaning of his words--his intoxication does not render inadmissible his confession of facts tending to incriminate him. The extent of his intoxication when the confession was made, however, is a relevant circumstance bearing upon its credibility, a question exclusively for the jury's determination.

In his charge, the judge made it crystal clear to the jurors that they were sole judges of the credibility of all witnesses who had testified and, if they were satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that defendant had made the challenged statements to the officers, they should consider the condition of the defendant at the time he made the statements. This was a substantial compliance with the requirement laid down in State v. Isom, supra.

It is settled law in this jurisdiction that the competency of an extra-judicial confession of guilt is a preliminary question to be determined by the trial judge in the manner set out in State v. Whitener, 191 N.C. 659, 132 S.E. 603 and State v. Rogers, 233 N.C. 390, 64 S.E.2d 572, 28 A.L.R.2d 1104. A finding that the confession was voluntarily made will not be disturbed on appeal 'unless accompanied by some imputed error of law or legal inference.' State v. Grass, 223 N.C. 31, 25 S.E.2d 193. Ordinarily the rule is stated to be that if the court's finding is supported by any competent evidence it will be sustained, State v. Outing, 255 N.C. 468, 121 S.E.2d 847; if not, it will be set aside. State v. Chamberlain, 263 N.C. 406, 139 S.E.2d 620. Much of the evidence which the trial judge heard was conflicting, but 'where the evidence is merely in conflict on the question as to whether or not a confession was voluntary, the ruling of the court is conclusive on appeal.' State v. Hammond, 229 N.C. 108, 47 S.E.2d 704. The evidence fully supports Judge Bickett's findings. Defendant had and was accorded the right to a preliminary hearing on the competency of his alleged confession. The judge, however, was not required either to believe or to accept his testimony as if it were true.

Upon the argument, defendant's counsel complained that the trial judge 'wanted to relate defendant's confession to the truth' instead of to...