Smith v. Commonwealth

Martin Thomas Smith was, on July 27, 1964, indicted in the Circuit Court of the County of Prince William for the murder of Henry Blaine Moore. The indictment was in the statutory short form, Virginia Code,, § 19.1-166, 1960 Repl. Vol. Represented by counsel of his own choosing, he was tried on November 24 and 25, 1964, before a jury, on a plea of not guilty. The jury found him guilty of voluntary manslaughter, and fixed his punishment at two years confinement in the State Penitentiary. Sentence was imposed accordingly. We granted a writ of error to review the judgment.

The facts are not…