Blackwell v. State

Citations

• 79 Fla. 709
• 86 So. 224

Syllabus

<p>1 It is not indispensable that tbe jury, in a capital case, should be committed to the charge of a bailiff specially sworn for the occasion. It is sufficient if they be put in charge of the Sheriff, or his deputy, who has taken the oath of office.</p> <p>2. Where in a criminal prosecution the evidence adduced does not clearly sustain a ground of a motion for new trial, asserting that counsel for the defendants were so intoxicated dur ing the trial as to substantially deprive the defendants of their right to be properly represented by counsel, and the.record discloses no lack of efficiency of the counsel, the motion on that ground is properly denied.</p> <p>3. A portion of a charge that “the fact of flight is a circumstance to be considered by the jury as tending to increase the probability of the defendant being the guilty person,” being abstract, is harmless when coupled in the same paragraph with other statements of the law on the subject, and under all the circumstances of the case the defendants could not reasonably have been prejudiced by the quoted charge.</p> <p>4. It is not error to refuse to give instructions that have already-been given substantially, though couched in different language.</p> <p>5. In order to merit consideration by this Court assignments of error must be argued, unless the error complained of is so glaring or patent that no argument is needed to demonstrate it.</p> <p>6. Where one of the assignments of error is based upon the overruling- of the motion for a new trial, an appellate court will consider only such grounds of the motion as are argued.</p> <p>7. Proper charges on the subject of “alibi” discussed.</p> <p>8. Where a portion of a charge is abstract, and even if. not entirely correct, it is manifestly harmless, it is not reversible error to refuse to give a more appropriate charge on the subject that is requested by the interested party.</p> <p>9. Under the statute authorizing the use in a subsequent trial of the evidence incorp