State v. Penland

CAMPBELL, Judge.

The defendant’s only contention is that error was committed when the trial court, without being requested to do so, instructed the jury that the defendant had not testified in his own behalf and that the law of North Carolina gave him the right to do so. Defendant contends that he was prejudiced because the trial court did not instruct the jury that it was not to consider the defendant’s action in any manner in reaching their verdict.

The actual instructions to the jury on this point were:

“Now the defendant in this case has not testified. The law of North Carolina gives him…