Ex Parte Ainsworth

We granted Defendant's request to review the holding of the Court of Criminal Appeals that the trial court properly refused to allow defense counsel to argue that his client was guilty of an offense other than the offense with which he was charged. We reverse and remand.

The facts are amply stated in the Court of Criminal Appeals' opinion (Ainsworth v. State, 501 So.2d 1265 (Ala.Cr.App. 1986)), and need not be detailed here. Suffice it to say that the Defendant was indicted for theft in the first degree; and, during defense counsel's summation to the jury, the trial court sustained the State's…