Lang v. State

Citations

• 42 Fla. 595

Syllabus

<p>1. An indictment for larceny under Section 2440, Revised Statutes, in proper form and found to be a true bill by a grand jury in a court having jurisdiction of the subject-matter, properly signed, endorsed and presented as required by statute, and describing the property alleged to have been stolen as one hundred dollars, of the currency of the United States of America, the denomination of which was to the grand jurors unknown, of the property of a named person, is not so defective in reference to the description of the property as to amount to- no indictment.</p> <p>2. In criminal pleading the omission to state some matters of description, not essential constituents of an offence, but which are required to be stated if known, may be excused by an allegation that they were unknown to the indicting grand jury, and this rule applies to the description of property in indictments for larceny.</p> <p>3. Whether the allegation in an indictment for larceny of a want of more perfect knowledge of the description of the property alleged to have been stolen is subject to enquiry before the trial jury, need not be considered in a case where there is no evidence that the grand jury was in possession of information that would enable them to give a better description.</p> <p>4. The trial court should not by any arbitrary standard direct the jury thereby to weigh and estimate the testimony of a defendant who takes the stand as a witness.</p> <p>5. A’ request to charge on behalf of a defendant who. testifies in his defence that the jury have no right to disregard his testimony on the ground alone that he is the defendant in the case, is properly refused, especially where the court instructs the jury fully as to how they should weigh the testimony of witnesses generally.</p> <p>6; In an indictment for grand larceny under a statute providing that if the property stolen is of the value of twenty dollars or more the offence shall be grand larceny, and if the value is less than twenty