People v. Arnold

Citations

• 116 Cal. 682
• 48 P. 803
• 1897 Cal. LEXIS 606

Syllabus

<p>Criminal Law—Assault with Intent' to Murder—Evidence—Known Infidelity of Wife — Justification—Rebuttal of Malice.—Upon the trial of a charge for an assault with intent to murder, committed by defendant upon the person of his wife, evidence that he bad been informed that his wife was running with other men for immoral and illicit purposes, and that at the time of the assault he supposed she was going away for some such purpose, is not admissible to justify the assault charged; and where his own testimony showed that he had been aware of such lewd conduct on her part for eighteen months, and it was not claimed or offered to be shown that defendant was acting under the influence of passion aroused by any receut information of his wife’s infidelity, such evidence is not admissible to rebut malice in the assault.</p> <p>Id.—Conviction of Assault with Deadly Weapon—Rejection of Evidence Subtantially Given—Harmless Ruling.—Where the defendant was convicted of the lesser offense of assault with a deadly weapon, of which malice is not. an essential ingredient, and evidence of his wife’s infidelity was in substantial effect placed before the jury, the rejection of other evidence of such infidelity, for the purpose of rebutting malice under a charge of assault with intent to murder is harmless.</p> <p>Id. —Charge of Prior Conviction of Felony—Confession—Evidence— Impeachment—Question as to Prior Conviction—Construction of Code—Waiver.—The purpose of section 1093 of the Civil Code, which provides that where the defendant has confessed a charge of prior conviction, the clerk in reading the indictment or information shall omit therefrom all that i*elafces to such previous conviction, is to give the defendant the benefit of withholding from the jury a knowledge of such prior conviction in cases other than those where the defendant by the conduct of his case, in becoming a witness in his own behalf, subjects himself to the same tests of credibility by impeachment or otherwise as