Williams v. State
Decision Date | 05 February 1906 |
Citation | 87 Miss. 373,39 So. 1006 |
Court | Mississippi Supreme Court |
Parties | SCOTT WILLIAMS v. STATE OF MISSISSIPPI |
FROM the circuit court of Grenada county, HON. J. T. DUNN, Judge.
Williams the appellant, was indicted and tried for and convicted of murder, and appealed to the supreme court. On the trial of the case in the circuit court the state's attorney, upon cross-examination of the defendant, asked him the following question: "Have you ever been convicted of any crime?" The action of the court in permitting this question and the affirmative answer thereto to go to the jury over the objection of the defendant presented the point of greatest contention before the supreme court.
The code sections (Code 1892, §§ 1743, 1746) referred to in the opinion of the court are in these words:
S. B Williams, for appellant.
The court below allowed the prosecution to ask defendant if he had ever been convicted of any crime, although the appellant did not offer evidence of his character nor in any way offer to show it. Appellant's character was thus attacked without his putting it at issue. Kearney v. State, 68 Miss. 233; McQueen v. State, 18 South. Rep. (Ala.), 843.
R. V. Fletcher, assistant attorney-general, for appellee.
There was no error in refusing to permit counsel to show that deceased had been convicted of manslaughter. The court offered to permit defendant to show the character of deceased for peace or violence, but declined to go into particular acts. This was correct. Kearney v. State, 68 Miss. 233 (s.c., 8 So. 292).
The assignment of error based upon the cross-examination of the appellant is untenable. The accused is by statute made a competent witness in his own behalf in any prosecution for crime against him. The privilege is granted him of becoming a witness if he shall so decide; but, if he does, he assumes all the incidents of the position of witness. McMasters v. State, 83 Miss....
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