State v. White

EXUM, Justice.

Defendant must be given a new trial on both indictments because of prejudicial error committed in the trial judge’s instructions to the jury.

The principal State’s witness was Delores Austin. Her testimony was essentially this: She was defendant’s girl friend. Defendant asked her after Bunny White’s preliminary hearing to help him kill Watson. She overheard defendant discuss killing Watson “dozens of times,” many times with other members of defendant’s family. On the night of May 19, 1973, defendant sent her twice to Watson’s home to determine whether Watson was there. After her…