State v. . Smith
Supreme Court of North Carolina
This is an indictment for the slander of an innocent woman under Revisal, sec. 3640. The exceptions are to the charge of tbe judge.
Read the full summary
This is an indictment for the slander of an innocent woman under Revisal, sec. 3640. The exceptions are to the charge of tbe judge. He correctly defined tbe term “innocent woman” as used in tbe statute, and tben charged upon tbe burden of proof as follows: 1. Tbe burden of proving tbe charge is upon tbe State, and it must satisfy you beyond a reasonable doubt, and if it fails to offer evidence which will establish tbe uttering of tbe slanderous words beyond a reasonable doubt, tbe offense is not made out; but tbe defendants having admitted uttering tbe slanderous words, proof of that fact is…
1Opinion of the CourtWalKer, J.
When the charge of the court is analyzed and its several parts compared and after giving it a fair and reasonable construction as a whole, which we are required to do in all eases, we are driven to the conclusion that the judge virtually told the jury that the burden was on the defendants to disprove the innocence of the prosecutrix. It may -well be inferred from one or two sentences of the charge that his Honor thought the burden as to this ingredient of the offense was upon the State, and this was the correct view; but when he said that there was a presumption of law in favor of the…
2Cases cited4 opinions
- State v. . McDanielSupreme Court of North Carolina · 1881
- State v. . WoodlySupreme Court of North Carolina · 1855
- State v. . EvansSupreme Court of North Carolina · 1858
- State v. Mitchell.Supreme Court of North Carolina · 1903