Public-domain · open source
OpenJurist

175 Ala. 1

Parris v. State

Supreme Court of Alabama

Decided December 21, 1911

Supreme Court of Alabama · decided 1911-12-21

' Henry Parris ivas convicted of murder in tbe second degree, and be appeals. Tbe plea in abatement is based on tbe fact that tbe judge of tbe circuit court, whose duty it was to draw tbe grand jury wbicb returned tbe indictment, did not draw it before tbe last term before tbe present term of tbe circuit court adjourned, but that the court, on about tbe 24th day of March, 1910, drew from tbe jury box of Fayette county tbe grand jury.

Cited by 9 later decisions — most recently May 1932

9 state decisions

Relies on Mose v. State · Pitts v. State · Jones v. State

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Affirmed · Decided 1911-12-21

View the full empirical analysis of this case →

SIMPSON, J.

¶1The appellant was convicted of the crime of murder in the second degree.

¶2There was no error in the action of the court in sustaining the motion to strike the first plea in abatement. Said plea is unintelligible in that it states that the *6judge “did not draw tlie grand jury . * before the last term of the present term of the circuit court ■adjourned.”

¶3In addition, section 15 of the jury act 1909 (page ■310) expressly provides for drawing juries at times ■subsequent to the adjournment of the previous term, and section 29 (page 317) declares expressly that the provisions in regard to drawing, etc., of jurors are merely directory and that “no objection can be taken to any venire of jurors except for fraud in drawing or .summoning the jurors.”

¶4The plea does not raise the point that the jury was not drawn “in the presence of the officers designated by law.” — Code, § 7572.

¶5There was no error in overruling the motion to quash the indictment. The fact that the name of M. E. Reeves appeared in the indorsement under the words, “foreman of grand jury,” in place of over said words, did not affect the validity of his indorsement. The record shows that said M. E. Reeves had been by the court appointed foreman of the grand jury.

¶6The fact that two persons summoned as regular jurors were excused from serving on the regular panel did not render the placing of their names upon the special venire illegal.

¶7• There was no error in excluding the testimony as to the deceased’s shooting craps in the house of witness 30 minutes before the shooting occurred, the testimony not being relevant and not part of the res gestae.

¶8The defendant having been placed" upon the stand, and having testified as a witness, was subject to impeachment by proof of bad character, just as any other witness Avould be (Mitchell v. State, 148 Ala. 618, 42 South. 1014), consequently there was no error in allowing the witness to testify that defendant’s general character was bad.

¶9*7There was no error in overruling the motion to exclude the statement by the witness Tidwell that Bud Parris and John Parris were drinking shortly after the killing, as they had both detailed circumstances in regard to the killing, and the facts mentioned were proper to be considered by the jury in determining whether said witnesses were in a condition to remember accurately what transpired.

¶10Charges A, B, and C, given on request of the state, were properly given. Pitts v. State, 140 Ala. 70, 77, 88, 37 South. 101; Jones v. State, 79 Ala. 23, 25; Mose v. State, 36 Ala. 211, 231; Owens v. State, 52 Ala. 400, 405.

¶11Charge 27, requested by the defendant, was properly refused as it ignores the questions as to whether the defendant was without fault in bringing on the difficulty, ■also as to whether the defendant’s mind was impressed that he was in imminent danger, also as to whether he ■could retreat without increasing his danger.

¶12Charge 30, requested by. the defendant, was properly refused. It singled out a part of the evidence, and was ■otherwise faulty.

¶13Charge 31 is elliptical and argumentative, and was properly refused.

¶14Charge 33 is unintelligible and elliptical, besides being argumentative, and was properly refused.

¶15Charge 86 ignored the duty to retreat and also the ■question as to whether the defendant was, in fact, impressed that he was in imminent danger, and was properly refused.

¶16Charge 38 is argumentative, and was properly refused.

¶17The judgment of the court, is affirmed.

¶18Affirmed.

All the Justices concur, save Dowdell, C. J., not sitting.
/175/ala/1 · .json · Public domain