People v. Ah Sing
California Supreme Court
Appeal from the District Court, County of San Luis Obispo. The defendant was charged in the indictment with having murdered Ah Jack. The evidence for the people proved the corpus delicti, but tended to show that the deceased was assaulted by Ah Sing, Ah Tou and Ah Him, and was killed by a pistol ball, and that the defendant had previously threatened to kill the deceased.
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Appeal from the District Court, County of San Luis Obispo. The defendant was charged in the indictment with having murdered Ah Jack. The evidence for the people proved the corpus delicti, but tended to show that the deceased was assaulted by Ah Sing, Ah Tou and Ah Him, and was killed by a pistol ball, and that the defendant had previously threatened to kill the deceased. The defendant’s testimony tended to show that the deceased was the assailant, and to disprove the evidence as to threats. The defendant was convicted of murder in the first degree, and appealed.
1Opinion of the Court
By the Court, Wallace, C. J.:
The court below, after instructing the jury that the defendants on trial upon an indictment for murder are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, proceeded as follows: “A reasonable doubt is that state of a case, which after the entire comparison and consideration of all the evidence, leaves the minds of the jurors in that condition that they cannot feel an abiding conviction, to a moral certainty, of the truth of the charge. The doubt must not be vague and shadowy. Absolute certainty is rarely attainable and is never required. If…
2Cases cited1 opinion
- People v. BrannonCalifornia Supreme Court · 1873
3Cited by11 opinions
- Lovett v. StateSupreme Court of Florida · 1892
- Jenkins v. StateSupreme Court of Florida · 1895
- People v. BemmerlyCalifornia Supreme Court · 1890
- People v. PaulsellCalifornia Supreme Court · 1896
- People v. BickerstaffCalifornia Court of Appeal · 1920
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