State v. Warren

MOORE, Justice.

In every case where a death sentence has been pronounced, it is the practice of this Court to carefully review the entire record to determine if prejudicial error appears. If such error does appear, even though not assigned by defendant, in capital *554cases we take cognizance of the error ex mero motu. In present case, prejudicial error is disclosed by the following testimony:

Curtis Boyd Wyatt, a witness for the State, testified:

“ . . . I was arrested February 17, 1975 on the charge of breaking and entering and placed in the Haywood County Jail. I recall seeing Willard Warren on…