State v. Miles

Washington Supreme Court
State v. Miles, 15 Wash. 534 (Wash. 1896)
46 P. 1047; 1896 Wash. LEXIS 243
Scott

State v. Miles

Opinion of the Court

The opinion of the court was delivered by

Scott, J.

The defendant was convicted of larceny and has appealed. One of the errors complained of is the failure of the court to instruct the jury in writing, the defendant having requested the court to give written instructions. The charge given was partly written and partly oral, and for this reason the case must be reversed and remanded for a new trial.

The fact that a stenographer was present, who took down the charge as given, was not a sufficient compliance with the statute. (Code Proc., §354, subd. 4.)

Another error complained of was in relation to the impeachment of a witness. Testimony had been introduced to show that his reputation for truth and veracity was bad, and the witnesses were then asked whether from their knowledge of his reputation they would believe him under oath, and the court sustained an objection to the question. We think the weight of authority is now against permitting witnesses to tes*536tify to their opinions in this respect, and the objection was properly sustained.

Hoyt, C. J., and Anders, Gordon and Dunbar, JJ., concur.

Reference

Full Case Name
The State of Washington v. George Miles
Cited By
3 cases
Status
Published
Syllabus
TRIAL — REQUEST FOR WRITTEN INSTRUCTIONS — FAILURE OF COURT TO COMPLY — IMPEACHMENT OF WITNESS. The giving of a partly written and partly oral charge to the jury is error, where written instructions have been requested; and the fact that a stenographer present in court took down the charge as given by the judge is not a sufficient compliance with the requirements of the statute in that respect. A witness cannot he impeached as to his truth and veracity by the testimony of other witnesses that, from their knowledge of his reputation, they would not believe him under oath.