Smith v. State

The plaintiff in error, Lawrence Alton Smith, hereinafter called defendant, was indicted for murder in the first degree of E. L. Martin, the office and business manager for Castle Heights Military Academy in Lebanon, Tennessee.

Upon trial, the jury found defendant guilty of murder in the second degree and he was sentenced to serve ten years in the State Penitentiary (T.C.A. sec. 39-2403). Defendant has appealed in error and insists, among his other assignments, that the evidence preponderates against the verdict of guilt and in favor of his innocence.

There is little or no dispute as to the…