Tennison v. State

• Decision Date: 11 June 1913
• Citation: 62 So. 780,183 Ala. 1
• Parties: TENNISON v. STATE.
• Court: Alabama Supreme Court

62 So. 780

183 Ala. 1

TENNISON v. STATE.

Supreme Court of Alabama

June 11, 1913

Appeal from Circuit Court, Limestone County; D.W. Speake, Judge.

Fletcher Tennison was convicted of murder, and he appeals. Reversed and remanded.

Ora Slaton in testifying stated, in response to the question by the solicitor if she had heard a conversation between her husband and defendant in reference to his going out of the state and leaving and not appearing here before the grand jury about Mr. Tennison, said: "I heard Arthur ask Fletcher just about a week before the killing to buy his crop; that he didn't want to appear against him in the court, and Fletcher said, 'What is your hurry about it?' and Arthur replied, 'I don't want to appear against you in court,' and Fletcher said: 'You had better not.' "

The following charges were refused to defendant:

"(20) I charge you that there may be a conspiracy to do an unlawful act without an agreement, express or implied, or that there may exist a community of purpose between two or more parties to do such act; and, if you find from the evidence in this case that there is no testimony of such conspiracy between this defendant and Oscar Pitts, to take the life of Arthur Slaton, then I charge you that, unless said Pitts' statement connecting this defendant with the commission of the offense charged in the indictment is satisfactorily corroborated by evidence other than Pitts', then you cannot convict this defendant on the theory that he entered into a conspiracy with Pitts, or that there existed between him and Pitts a community of purpose to take the life of Arthur Slaton.

"(21) If the jury do not believe the evidence of the witness Oscar Pitts, the defendant cannot be convicted."

"(23) If you believe from the evidence that the only evidence tending to corroborate the testimony of Oscar Pitts that tends to connect the defendant with the commission of the offense is the testimony of Lena Pitts, and if the jury do not believe the testimony of Lena Pitts to be true, they must find the defendant not guilty."

W.R Walker, of Athens, for appellant.

R.C. Brickell, Atty. Gen., and W.L. Martin, Asst. Atty. Gen., for the State.

ANDERSON J.

The proof by Ora Slaton, in a conversation between the defendant and deceased, that defendant told deceased he had better not testify against him, though of slight probative force, was in the nature of a threat, and was properly admitted.

Evidence incriminating another must relate to the res gestae, and not to conduct, declarations, or...