Fields v. State
Fields v. State
Dissenting Opinion
dissenting. If the verdict of guilty had been rendered without errors of law having been committed during the trial preceding that verdict, I would be the first to affirm the conviction. But to me no higher or more solemn duty rests upon this court than that of seeing that executions of persons come only after a conviction of a crime for which that penalty is provided by law, after a trial free from errors of law. The evidence of guilt of a cold-blooded murder is abundant in
Opinion of the Court
The plaintiff in error, Jennings Edward Fields, was indicted in DeKalb Superior Court for the murder on February 6, 1954, of James L. Mize, a peace officer of DeKalb County. The record discloses that, on February 6, 1954, the Police Department of DeKalb County received a long-distance telephone call and also a telegram from the Mecklenburg County Police Department, Charlotte, North Carolina, .requesting the arrest of the defendant, and that this telegram, reading as follows: “Arrest one Jennings E. Fields first degree burglary— felony warrant on file Mecklenburg County Police Dept. Charlotte
1. Ground 4 of the amended motion for a new trial excepts to the charge of the court on the law of confessions of guilt, upon the ground that such a charge was not authorized by the evidence. While this court has held many times that it is harmful and prejudicial error to give in charge to the jury in a criminal case the law in reference to confessions of guilt when there is no evidence of a confession of guilt, but only evidence of an admission which might tend to criminate (Dumas v. State, 63 Ga. 600 (5); Covington v. State, 79 Ga. 687, 7 S. E. 153; Fletcher v. State, 90 Ga. 468 (3), 17 S. E. 100; Suddeth v. State, 112 Ga. 407 (1), 37 S. E. 747; Weaver v. State, 135 Ga. 317, 69 S. E. 488;
2. While, under Code § 27-207, a lawful arrest without a warrant can be made by an officer only in three instances, (1) if the offense is committed in his presence; or (2) the offender is endeavoring to escape; or (3) if for other cause there is likely to be a failure of justice for want of an officer to issue a warrant — the General Assembly by the enactment of the Uniform Criminal Extradition Act (Ga. L. 1951, p. 726; Code, Ann. Supp., § 44-414), made provision for another instance in which an arrest without a warrant might be lawfully made, it being there provided: “The arrest of a person may be lawfully made also by any peace officer . . . without a warrant upon reasonable information that the accused stands charged in the courts of a State with a crime punishable by death or imprisonment for a term exceeding one year.” Under the undisputed evidence in this case, the arresting officers, Mize and Davis, had reasonable information at the time of the arrest of the defendant, as outlined above, that he stood charged in the State of North Carolina with a felony punishable by death or imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. -It was, therefore, not error for the trial judge to charge the jury, as complained of in ground 5 of the amended motion for a new trial: “If you believe that officer Mize and officer Davis had reasonable information that this defendant had committed a series of offenses in this State of North Carolina that carried the penalty of death or was a felony that was punishable by not less than one year in the penitentiary, and you believe they acted on that information, then I charge you that they had a right to make the arrest.
3. It was not error, as contended in ground 6 of the amended motion for a new trial, for the judge to instruct the jury in effect that the evidence with reference to the warrants and charges against the defendant in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, was not before them for the purpose of showing that the defendant is guilty of the offenses charged there, but that the jury might consider this evidence insofar as it might throw light upon the question as to whether or not he knew he was charged with that crime, and whether or not he believed and had cause to believe, when the officers informed him he was wanted in North Carolina and requested him to accompany them to police headquarters, that the deceased officer Mize was making an arrest.
4. Having held that, under the undisputed evidence in this case, the arrest of the defendant by the officer without a warrant was lawful, the charge complained of in ground 7 of the motion for a new trial, which instructed the jury that, if there is no warrant obtained by an officer, and he makes an arrest, the defendant has a right to resist the illegal arrest with such force as is necessary, even if contradictory and confusing, was not harmful to the defendant, since it gave him the benefit of a defense to which he was not entitled under the law.
5. The offense of voluntary manslaughter as related to mutual combat or mutual intention to fight was not involved under the evidence in this case, and the trial judge did not err in failing to instruct the jury with reference thereto, as complained of in ground 8 of the amended motion for a new trial.
6. The evidence amply authorized the verdict, and the trial judge did not err in denying the motion for a new trial.
Judgment affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Fields v. the State
- Cited By
- 13 cases
- Status
- Published