Smith v. State
Smith v. State
Opinion of the Court
The accused was tried and convicted for the offense of burglary, and appeals from the denial of his motion for new trial. He made an unsworn statement to the jury and the trial court instructed the jury in part that "during the trial of this case the defendant made a statement in his own behalf, as he had a right under the law to do. Now this statement is not under oath, and it is not subject to cross examination without his consent.” Held:
1. Substantially identical language as the italicized portion of this charge was approved in Crowe v. State, 117 Ga. App. 598, 599 (161 SE2d 512), although the case was reversed on additional wording -of the charge. Appellants strongly contend that the holding in the Crowe case, supra, is in conflict with the holdings in the cases of Gibbs v. State, 112 Ga. App. 272 (145 SE2d 43) and Wright v. State, 113 Ga. App. 436 (148 SE2d 333). We do not agree. During the trial defendant made an unsworn statement. Subsequently, the State addressed the court: "Your
2. There is no merit in the general grounds of the motion for new trial, as the evidence amply supports the verdict.
Judgment affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.