State v. Milling

Citations

• 35 S.C. 16
• 14 S.E. 284
• 1892 S.C. LEXIS 124

Syllabus

<p>1. Charce on Facts. — In asking a witness whether he had ever seen the body of any one who died from the effects of calomel, except the the deceased, the trial judge did not intimate to the jury his opinion on the question at issue, to wit, whether the deceased had died from the effects of calomel.</p> <p>2. Charging Juries — Circumstantial Evidence. — The trial judge charged the jury that the principal rules by which they should be “guided in hearing circumstantial evidence were, 1, that the circumstances must be proved to your entire satisfaction ; and 2, when the circumstances are established, they must point conclusively to the person charged and must be inconsistent with any other reasonable hypothesis.” Held, no error, a more complete statement of the rules not having been requested.</p> <p>3. General Exceptions to a charge, alleging it to be upon the facts of the case, but not specifying particulars of error, need not be considered.</p> <p>4. Charge on Facts. — A defendant being on trial on a charge of murder committed by administering poison, the trial judge, in stating to the jury as an abstract proposition, that administering poison implies design — in stating the testimony of the State to prove motive — in submitting it to the jury to say whether “these facts” would amount to a motive — did not charge upon the facts within the inhibition of the constitution.</p> <p>5. Ibid. — After stating the testimony for the State, the judge said to the jury that from that testimony they were called upon to find the defenant guilty. Held, not to involve an expression of the judge’s opinion, but was a mere statement of what the prosecution claimed.</p> <p>6. Ibid. — Where the judge stated the testimony for both sides only in substance, and said, after stating the testimony for defendant, that sncli was the testimony in substance for the defence, he committed no error, even though there was other evidence; and an incomplete statement in a charge is not to be corrected