Commonwealth v. Ballon

Citations

• 229 Pa. 323
• 78 A. 831
• 1911 Pa. LEXIS 493

Syllabus

<p>Criminal law — Murder—Evidence—Previous attempt at robbery — Confession of confederate — Inference of assent.</p> <p>1. Where a prisoner indicted for murder confesses that he went with three others in the nighttime to the house of the deceased, remained outside the house until the killing took place, and then entered, but denies that he confederated with the men who did the killing, evidence is admissible to show that about three weeks previous to the murder he had conspired with two of the men who had done the killing to break into the deceased’s house to rob or steal, and had at that time actually made the attempt.</p> <p>2. On the trial of an indictment for murder, where the commonwealth shows that shortly after the prisoner’s arrest, but before information against him, a confession of a confederate had been read to him, and that he made no denial of the statements it contained with respect to his own complicity, but became visibly affected, the confession of the confederate may be read in evidence to the jury, but only for the purpose of supporting an inference of assent to the statements made therein from the defendant’s silence and manner.</p>