Bell v. Commonwealth

This case presents the question of the degree of negligence required to convict one of involuntary manslaughter where the homicide is alleged to have been caused by the negligent operation of an automobile.

Gordon A. Bell, the plaintiff in error, who will be hereinafter referred to as the defendant, was indicted for manslaughter. The indictment was in the short or statutory form, Code 1936, section 4865, and charged the defendant “did on February 1, 1937, in said county of Arlington, Virginia, feloniously kill and slay one, Jessie Cooley, against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth.”

Upon…