People v. Clark

Citations

• 84 Cal. 573
• 24 P. 313
• 1890 Cal. LEXIS 845

Syllabus

<p>Criminal Law — Homicide — Self-defense — Conflicting Evidence — Province of Jury. —• When the evidence is conflicting as to whether a defendant convicted of murder acted in self-defense or not, the jury are the sole judges of the credibility of the witnesses whose testimony tends to establish either position, and their verdict cannot be disturbed upon appeal, if no error is shown in the rulings of the court.</p> <p>Id.—Evidence — Opinion of Witness—Effect of Mixing Cattle— Province of Jury.—A question as to whether the mixing of his own cattle by the deceased with those of the defendant upon government land occupied by defendant was not apt to give rise to trouble or dispute, is objectionable, as calling for an opinion or inference which the jury alone were competent to form upon or infer from the facts in evidence.</p> <p>Id. — Attempt of Defendant to Prevent Mixing of Cattle — Rejection of Evidence — Error Cured.— When the court sustains an objection to a question as to whether the defendant at the time of the homicide was attempting to prevent the deceased from mixing his cattle with those of defendant, the error, if any, is cured by permitting an answer that the defendant appeared to he trying to keep the deceased from driving his cattle in that direction.</p> <p>Id. — Expert Evidence —Powder-marks — Distance of Deceased from Defendant. — When there is a material inquiry as to the distance of the deceased from the defendant at the time of the homicide, as bearing upon the question whether deceased was near enough to strike the defendant, and whether the shooting was in self-defense, and it appears in evidence that no powder-marks were found upon the clothing or body of the deceased, it is proper to allow expert testimony for the prosecution as to the farthest distance at which clothing could or would be powder-marked with a rifle such as was used by defendant.</p> <p>Id. —Immaterial Evidence — Eormer Trespass of Deceased — Conspiracy — Offer of Evidence. — A