Maria v. State
Texas Supreme Court
Appeal from McLennan. The case was tried before Hon. Thomas Harrison, one of the district judges. The appellant, a freedwoman, was indicted at the fall term, 1866, of the District Court of McLennan county, for the murder of Mary, who was alleged to have been a slave of B. D. Arnold'at the time of the killing, which was laid on the 28th of October, 1863. It was charged in the indictment that the killing was done with a butcher’s knife, and that the deceased languished until…
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Appeal from McLennan. The case was tried before Hon. Thomas Harrison, one of the district judges. The appellant, a freedwoman, was indicted at the fall term, 1866, of the District Court of McLennan county, for the murder of Mary, who was alleged to have been a slave of B. D. Arnold'at the time of the killing, which was laid on the 28th of October, 1863. It was charged in the indictment that the killing was done with a butcher’s knife, and that the deceased languished until the 29th of November, 1863, when she died of the wound. "When the homicide in this case occurred, both the slayer and the…
1Opinion of the CourtDonley, J.
—It is believed that the charge of the court was calculated to mislead the jury, in not properly defining the distinction between murder in the second decree and manslaughter, and the charge upon manslaughter did not have sufficient reference to the cause before the jury.
The jury were charged, that “in murder in the second decree, the design to kill is conceived and executed in a transport of passion, which renders the mind incapable of cool reflection, and deprives it of the power to weigh well the nature and consequences of the act about to be committed.” This charge, under a certain state…
2Cases cited1 opinion
- Villareal v. StateTexas Supreme Court · 1861
3Cited by13 opinions
- Pefferling v. StateTexas Supreme Court · 1874
- State v. TurnerSupreme Court of Missouri · 1912
- Brown v. StateTexas Supreme Court · 1873
- Arnwine v. StateCourt of Criminal Appeals of Texas · 1905
- Hamby v. StateTexas Supreme Court · 1872
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