Nathan v. State
Nathan v. State
Opinion
The appellant was convicted of child abuse and sentenced to five years' imprisonment. The court granted the appellant's application for probation, conditioned on a period of confinement at Bryce Hospital.
The pertinent part of the questions by the prosecution and the answers by the appellant is as follows:
"Q. Did you pick up Kelvin Nathan because you were mad with your husband over an argument, and just throw him down?
"A. No, I did not throw him down.
"Q. You said you were going to kill him?
"A. No, I did not. What I going to kill him for, when I didn't kill the other six I had?
"Q. One of them died. *Page 20
"A. Yeah, by pneumonia, and that wasn't none of my fault, at all." (R. 53)
On motion by the appellant, the trial court promptly admonished the jury to disregard the statement by the prosecution, but overruled the motion for a mistrial. The appellant contends that the interjection by the state of the death of another child, in a prosecution for child abuse, was prejudicial and the court's failure to grant a mistrial was an abuse of discretion and reversible error.
The general rule concerning prejudicial statements made by counsel during the course of trial and closing arguments is set forth in Allred v. State,
"It is a general rule that where prejudicial statements are made in the heat of argument, even though improper, in accommodation of our adversary system, such statements are considered capable of being eradicated by the trial judge in sustaining objections thereto or by appropriate instructions to the jury or both." See also, Miller v. State,
431 So.2d 586 (Ala.Cr.App. 1983), and cases cited therein.
Since the statement by the prosecution came after the appellant had interjected the issue of the death of her other child, and in view of prompt action taken by the trial court, we cannot say that the objectionable statement was not capable of being eradicated from consideration by the jury.
We have carefully considered the entire record in this case, and find no error. The judgment of the trial court is due to be, and the same is, affirmed.
The foregoing opinion was prepared by Hon. Thomas N. Younger, Circuit Judge, temporarily on duty on the Court pursuant to §
AFFIRMED.
All the Judges concur.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Annie Lois Nathan v. State of Alabama.
- Cited By
- 11 cases
- Status
- Published