Johnson v. State
Mississippi Supreme Court
From: the circuit court of Pike county. Hon. Moyse H. Wilkinson, Judge. Johnson, the appellant, and three others, were indicted for the murder of Harriet Caston; there was a severance, and appellant was separately tried, convicted of the murder, and sentenced to suffer death, from which conviction and sentence he appealed to the supreme court.
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From: the circuit court of Pike county. Hon. Moyse H. Wilkinson, Judge. Johnson, the appellant, and three others, were indicted for the murder of Harriet Caston; there was a severance, and appellant was separately tried, convicted of the murder, and sentenced to suffer death, from which conviction and sentence he appealed to the supreme court. On the trial of the ease the state offered proof of alleged confessions made by appellant to certain private citizens, one of whom promised at the time to intercede with the judge in an effort to keep appellant from being hanged, and also told appellant…
1Opinion of the CourtWhitfield, C. J.
The confessions detailed in this case by White, Helmer and Thompson are clearly inadmissible, under the doctrine as settled in this state.
This error was emphasized by the refusal of the court to give the following instruction: “If you believe, from the evidence, that the confession, if you believe there was a confession, was brought about by fear, duress, intimidation, or by the hope or promise of reward, or that such confessions, if there were any, were untrue, then you may disregard them altogether.” This charge meant that if the jury believed, as to certain confessions, that they had been…
2Cited by16 opinions
- Abram v. StateMississippi Supreme Court · 1992
- Agee v. StateMississippi Supreme Court · 1966
- Layne v. StateMississippi Supreme Court · 1989
- State v. HenrySupreme Court of Louisiana · 1940
- Jones v. StateMississippi Supreme Court · 2003
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