State v. West

Defendant was indicted for murdering his father. 1-Ie was convicted as charged, without capital punishment, and was sentenced to the penitentiary for life.

In arguing the ease to the jury, the district attorney said:

“There are four verdicts you may render, guilty as charged, which means hanging; guilty as charged, without capital punishment, which means life imprisonment in the penitentiary, guilty of manslaughter, which ordinarily means twenty years in the penitentiary. Under the laws of Louisiana, a defendant under seventeen years of age with the exception of a. few crimes, among them…