Davis v. People

Citations

• 114 Ill. 86
• 29 N.E. 192
• 1885 Ill. LEXIS 576

Syllabus

<p>1. Cbiminal law—in cáse of homicide—proof of character of deceased as a peaceable man, and the contrary. Where a defendant on trial for the murder of his brother proved that the deceased was regarded as a “good man in a fight, ” and many other things that tended to show his character as a quick-tempered, violent and rash man, it was held, that there was no error in allowing the. prosecution, in rebuttal, to prove the character of the deceased as a peaceable man.</p> <p>2. Same—treatment of deceased by defendant. In the same case it was held that evidence of the manner in which the defendant had previously treated the deceased, being wholly immaterial, was properly excluded.</p> <p>3. Same—defining the various grades of the offence—instructions. On the trial of one for murder, where the evidence clearly showed the homicide was either murder or voluntary manslaughter, an instruction defining voluntary manslaughter need not also define involuntary manslaughter. To do so would be to call the attention of the jury to a principle of law not applicable to the facts, and would tend to confuse rather than enlighten them as to the real issue.</p> <p>4. An instruction in such case, telling the jury that they must believe, from the evidence, that the killing “was done in sudden heat of passion apparently sufficient to make the passion irresistible, ” to make it manslaughter, is not subject to the objection that it requires the defendant to show the existence of a passion absolutely irresistible, to reduce the killing to manslaughter; and it is not faulty in failing to state the law of self-defence, when that is stated in other instructions.</p> <p>5. Same—reasonable doubt. The law does not require that the jury shall believe that every fact in a criminal case has been proved beyond a reasonable doubt, before they can find the accused guilty. The reasonable doubt the jury is permitted to entertain must be as to the guilt of the accused on the whole evidence, and not as to any