Pannell v. State

Appellant was indicted and tried for murder in the first degree. A jury found him guilty of manslaughter in the first degree and fixed his punishment at ten years imprisonment. He was sentenced accordingly.

On the night of December 21, 1975, a group of close to a dozen men and women, old and young, had assembled at the home of Doc Callahan in rural Morgan County. Their main occupation at the time was drinking whiskey and beer. According to the evidence of at least six witnesses for the State, defendant had an argument with William Jack Dempsey and one or two others present about some whiskey…