Valentine v. Commonwealth
| Decision Date | 14 June 1948 |
| Docket Number | Record No. 3379. |
| Citation | 187 Va. 946 |
| Court | Virginia Supreme Court |
| Parties | WINNIE VALENTINE v. COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA. |
1. HOMICIDE — Manslaughter — Definition of Involuntary Manslaughter. — Involuntary manslaughter is the killing of one accidentally, contrary to the intention of the parties, in the prosecution of some unlawful, but not felonious act; or in the improper performance of a lawful act.
2. HOMICIDE — Self-Defense — Force in Repelling Attack. — An individual who has been assaulted has the right to use such force as is necessary to repel the attack.
3. HOMICIDE — Excusable Homicide — Death Inflicted through Misadventure in the Lawful Repulse of an Unjustified Attack — Case at Bar. — In the instant case, a prosecution for homicide, accused a small woman 67 years old, was attacked by deceased a larger and younger woman. Accused had been cutting flowers and had a small knife with a three-fourths inch blade in her hand and when she was assaulted and struck by the deceased she put up her hands to shield herself and she stated that she completely forgot she held in her hand the open knife. It did not appear whether the wounds were inflicted by deceased striking the open knife or by accused striking her back.
Held: That the killing fell within the realm of excusable homicide inflicted through misadventure in the lawful repulse of an unjustified attack.
4. HOMICIDE — Defenses — Distinction between Killing in Self-Defense and Unintentional Killing in Exercise of Self-Defense. — Ordinarily the law of self-defense is not applicable in a case of a killing resulting from an act which was accidental and unintentional, particularly where the facts of the case are not such as would make such law applicable. However, where the defense of excusable homicide by misadventure is relied on, the principles of self-defense may be involved, not for the purpose of establishing defense of self — but for the purpose of determining whether accused was or was not at the time engaged in a lawful act; and in such case the right, but not the law, of self-defense is invoked. Accused is entitled to an acquittal where he was lawfully acting in self-defense and the death of his assailant resulted from accident or misadventure.
5. HOMICIDE — Excusable Homicide — Meaning of Homicide by Misadventure or Accident. — Excusable homicide per infortunium, or by misadventure or accident, is where a person unfortunately kills another in the doing of a lawful act, without any intent to hurt, and without criminal negligence. If a man kills another in doing a lawful act in a lawful manner, that is, without negligence, the homicide is excusable, "for the act is lawful, and the effect is merely accidental."
Error to a judgment of the Corporation Court of the city of Norfolk. Hon. Richard B. Spindle, judge presiding.
The opinion states the case.
Edward S. Ferebee, for the plaintiff in error.
Ballard Baker, Special Assistant to the Attorney General, for the Commonwealth.
On the morning of June 12, 1947, Ida Dent was killed in the city of Norfolk. Her death resulted from a knife wound inflicted by Winnie Valentine.
The accused was indicted for murder and her first trial on June 24, 1947, resulted in a hung jury. At the second trial on August 18, 1947, a verdict of guilty of involuntary manslaughter was returned and her punishment fixed by the jury at one year in jail. That verdict was approved by the trial court and is before us for review.
A statement of the facts and circumstances attending the homicide is necessary for a correct determination of the questions presented.
The accused and the deceased were negro women who had known each other for some time. There was considerable disparity in their ages, height and weight. Winnie Valentine was 67 years old and five feet in height. She said her weight was about 80 pounds but there is some evidence that she weighed more. Ida Dent was 60 years old, five feet five inches in height, and weighed 135 to 140 pounds.
The accused had been appointed administratrix of the estate of Sally White, who had owned premises Nos. 1521-23 Calvert Street. This building contained two flats — the downstairs, No. 1523, was occupied by Ida Dent, Georgia Pennington and her husband. The upper flat was occupied by Ida Hawkins to whom it had been rented by the administratrix. That flat had formerly been occupied by Sally White, and Winnie Valentine had certain furniture belonging to Sally White's estate still stored there. As administratrix, she desired to sell this furniture, and on the morning of the homicide went to the premises with a neighbor, Carrie Hardy, who was interested in buying. Her purpose in visiting the premises was to show the furniture to Carrie Hardy, and she also desired to cut some flowers growing in the yard which she intended to take to church services that day.
After the furniture had been inspected, the accused, Carrie Hardy, and Ida Hawkins descended and were standing in the backyard when Ida Dent came out the back door of her apartment.
She said to the accused, "Why don't you speak to me?" The accused replied that on past occasions she had spoken to her (Ida Dent), but as the latter had not replied or responded, she had decided not to speak. No further words were then exchanged between these two, but the accused said to Carrie Hardy and Ida Hawkins, "Come on, let's go up front." These three proceeded along the driveway toward the front of the house. They were, however, followed by Ida Dent. When accused had walked to a point near the front of the house, she stopped to cut some flowers and took from her handbag a small knife ordinarily used by her in sewing and making buttonholes. It had a small detachable blade which protruded three-fourths of an inch from the end of an aluminum handle. She had used it for cutting flowers at this house on a previous occasion. While accused was leaning over cutting the flowers, Ida Dent, who had approached her, said, "You have got to die and I have got to die." This rather unusual statement may or may not have been made as a threat, — its significance and meaning are not explained. Anyhow accused made no reply thereto. Deceased then said, "I have a good mind to beat you." She immediately undertook to put that threat into execution by striking the accused on the head with her fists. The accused did not immediately strike back. She first undertook to ward off and shield herself from the blows by raising her left arm and then her right arm. Only when the attack continued did she strike back with her clenched fists. This was done by raising her closed hands and striking downward in a similar manner as she was being struck. The uncontradicted testimony of the accused relative to her use of the knife is that when she was first assaulted and struck by the deceased and put up her hands to shield herself, she completely forgot she held in her hand the open knife and if she had been conscious or aware of that fact, she would have thrown it down; nor did she know or realize that Ida Dent had been cut until after the affray was entirely over and her attention was called to some blood on the ground.
It conclusively appears from the agreed statement of facts that she ceased to strike back as soon as deceased desisted from her attack. This affray took place about fifteen feet from the sidewalk in front of the house near a hydrangea bush from which the accused had started to cut some flowers and was of only a few moments duration. When deceased desisted from her attack, the accused picked up her flowers which she had dropped while defending herself, put the knife in her handbag and accompanied by Carrie Hardy, walked back to her home. She had received scratches on her chin, hands, and head, and her hat had been knocked off. She said, and it is uncontradicted, that she was in fear of deceased when attacked, and in view of her assailant's greater size and strength, she was apprehensive of being thrown to the ground where she would be helpless.
Georgia Pennington, who saw part of the affray, and another witness discovered that Ida Dent had been stabbed and took her into the house to administer aid. Police officers were called, and upon their arrival, they found deceased slumped in a chair and very bloody. She was dead upon arrival at the hospital. An autopsy disclosed six wounds — two on the forearm, two on the upper arm, one in the stomach, and one in the chest. The first five were "punctures and superficial." Whether some were inflicted by deceased striking the open knife while accused sought to shield herself or by accused striking back does not appear. The wound in the chest was three inches deep and penetrated the heart. It was argued at the bar of this court by counsel for accused that a wound of such depth, that is, three inches, could not have been made by the small blade unless deceased's chest was deflated at the moment of the infliction of the wound. As there is no contradiction of the length of the blade, this seems to be the only reasonable deduction as to how a wound of such depth was inflicted.
When a police officer went to the home of the accused and told her she was charged with killing Ida Dent, the knife was promptly handed to him, and the first statement she made as to what happened was the same as her testimony in all material particulars.
Several witnesses, some colored and some white,...
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