Willis v. State
Mississippi Supreme Court
Appeal from the circuit court of Jones county. HoN. Paul B. Johnson, Judge. Oscar Willis was convicted of assault with intent to kill and appeals. The facts are fully stated in the opinion of the court. Does this indictment charge any offense as it stands ■without supplying any word? No one, no court has ever, or will ever, contend that it does and it could make no difference whether the omission was by mistake or design.
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Appeal from the circuit court of Jones county. HoN. Paul B. Johnson, Judge. Oscar Willis was convicted of assault with intent to kill and appeals. The facts are fully stated in the opinion of the court. Does this indictment charge any offense as it stands ■without supplying any word? No one, no court has ever, or will ever, contend that it does and it could make no difference whether the omission was by mistake or design. And it is not, as contended, a grammatical error —it is one of the substance. Then if something is to be supplied who is to determine what that shall be? Shall it be one…
1Opinion of the CourtCook, J.
The question in this case is: Did the indictment preferred against the defendant charge any crime known to the law? Omitting the formal part of the indictment, the offense attempted to be charged is in these words:
*844“That Oscar Willis, on the 5th day of September, 1916, in the county and district aforesaid, willfully, felo-niously and maliciously, then and there attempt to shoot and wound one V. K. Eeed with a deadly weapon, to wit, a shotgun, intending thereby with malice aforethought to kill and murder the said V. K. Eeed, against, ” etc.
It will he observed that the indictment does not charge…
2Cases cited3 opinions
- Cook v. StateMississippi Supreme Court · 1895
- Shuler v. MurphyMississippi Supreme Court · 1907
- McCearley v. StateMississippi Supreme Court · 1910
3Cited by1 opinion
- Kelly v. StateMississippi Supreme Court · 1948