State v. Westbrook

LAKE, Justice.

The defendant’s first assignment of error is to the overruling of his motion to quash the bill of indictment. He does not assert that the indictment is insufficient in form or allegation. His contention is that to subject him to trial under this indictment upon the capital offense of first degree murder violates his rights under the Constitution of the United States and under the Constitution of North Carolina in that:(1) Pursuant to G.S. 14-17, the jury was vested with the absolute discretion, if it found him guilty of murder in the first degree, to elect between the penalty of…