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542 So. 2d 458

542 So.2d 458

14 Fla.L.Weekly 1091

Hampton v. State

District Court of Appeal of Florida · decided 1989-05-03

Cited by 2 later decisions — most recently September 1999

2 state decisions

Key passage — most relied on by later courts

“[a] defendant cannot escape the penalties for an act which in point of fact produces death, which death might possibly have been averted by some possible mode of treatment. The true doctrine is that, where the wound is in itself dangerous to life, mere erroneous treatment of it or of the wounded man suffering from it will afford the defendant no protection against the charge of unlawful homicide.”

quoted by 1 later decision, including 591 So. 2d 195 - Rose v. State

Relies on Johnson v. State · Adams v. State · 338 So. 2d 874 - Tunsil v. State

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1989-05-03

View the full empirical analysis of this case →

POLEN, Judge.

¶1This appeal from a judgment and conviction for manslaughter deals primarily with the admissibility of medical testimony that the treatment, or lack thereof, received by the decedent in the hospital rose to a level of culpable negligence. The law appears well settled that where the wound inflicted by the assailant is dangerous to life, mere erroneous treatment of it would not afford the defendant protection against a charge of unlawful homicide. Johnson v. State, 64 Fla. 321, 59 So. 894 (1912); Tunsil v. State, 338 So.2d 874 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976); Adams v. State, 310 So.2d 782 (Fla. 2d DCA 1975).

¶2However, in this case the state was permitted, over objection, to question the medical examiner extensively on whether the care or lack of care received by the decedent had any bearing on his death some eight days after admission to the hospital. This was clearly made a major feature of the case by the prosecution. The defense sought to present contradictory testimony from a neurologist, Dr. Cohen, but the court sustained the state’s objection to admission of this evidence.

¶3We are of the view that once the state opened the door to presentation of this evidence to the jury, it was error to preclude the defendant from advancing conflicting testimony. Where the state has put forward testimony showing a causal relationship between the act complained of and the death of the decedent, the defense must then come forward and present evi*459dence, if possible, as to some other cause of death. Coachman v. State, 114 So.2d 189 (Fla. 1st DCA 1959).

¶4We do not find any merit to appellant’s other points on appeal. We reverse the conviction herein and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

DELL and WALDEN, JJ., concur.
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