Baldridge v. State

74 S.W. 916, 45 Tex. Crim. 193, 1903 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 138
CourtCourt of Criminal Appeals of Texas
DecidedJune 3, 1903
DocketNo. 2583.
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 74 S.W. 916 (Baldridge v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Baldridge v. State, 74 S.W. 916, 45 Tex. Crim. 193, 1903 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 138 (Tex. 1903).

Opinion

HENDERSON, Judge.

Appellant was convicted of rape under an indictment charging rape by fraud. The proof tended to show that the fraud consisted in the administration of some drug calculated to excite passion, administered in candy by appellant to prosecutrix, a girl about 18 years of age. Appellant denied both the act of intercourse and the administration of any drug.

Appellant assigns as error the admission of certain testimony of physicians with reference to the drug alleged to have been given by appellant to prosecutrix. As presented, we do not believe any of these bills properly present a question for review. In order to illustrate what we mean, the first bill is here quoted: “Dr. J. J. Robert, a witness for the State, being on the stand, was asked the following question by State’s counsel: £Q. What would be the effect on a young girl, healthy, strong, *195 17 years old, just recovering from her monthly, administering this drug’ (referring to tincture of cantharides) ? To which question and answer thereto defendant objected, on the ground that same presented a subject not- in issue in the case, and was irrelevant and inadmissible, as it did not tend to prove any fact in issue, which objection the court overruled and permitted said ivitness to answer, as follows: ‘The administration o"f any medicine depends very largely upon the condition of the person taking it at that time. Physicians know that just about the menstrual period, or just following the menstrual period, their skill is especially directed toward the medicine bringing about an effect on these special organs/ To which action of the court in overruling defendant’s objection to said question and permitting the witness to answer, as above stated, defendant then and there excepted, and here tenders his bill of exceptions number 1, asks that same be approved by the court.” In the first place, his bill does not show the conditions or environments under which the evidence was admitted. The bill of exceptions should always be full enough to show the error complained of. When the bill is to the admission of testimony, there must be enough facts stated in connection with the objectionable testimony to show that the court committed an error, under the circumstances, in admitting it. Cline v. State, 34 Texas Crim. Rep., 357; McGlasson v. State, 38 Texas Crim. Rep., 351; White’s Ann. Code Crim. Proc., sec. 1123, subdiv. 2. Bow, testing this portion of the bill by the rule above stated, none of the circumstances are presented which would show that the court ought not to have admitted this testimony. There are conditions under which it would be entirely proper for the court to have permitted the expert witness to have testified concerning the matter inquired ábout. If appellant had stated as a fact that there was no evidence adduced showing the character of drug administered to prosecutrix, this would have been sufficient; or enough of the evidence concerning said drug might have been shown so that this court might see the circumstances under which it was proposed to illustrate the testimony. Again, the grounds of objection here stated are that said testimony was irrelevant and inadmissible. This character of objection has been held improper, unless the testimony was obviously inadmissible. Hamlin v. State, 39 Texas Crim. Rep., 579. Moreover, we would observe that the answer of the witness does not, to our minds, show how the testimony, although it may have been illegal, could have injuriously affected ap"pellant. The answer was of almost general character, and really indicates nothing.

The second bill is in very much the same condition. We note here, however, appellant “objected to the evidence of the expert witness because there was no proof that tincture of cantharides had been administered to prosecuting witness, Tavie Shelley, in candy or otherwise.” We have frequently held that a ground of objection stated is not tantamount to a certificate of the judge that the fact existed. This should he shown as a fact in the statement of the bill itself; that is, the bill *196 should have stated here in synoptical form the testimony tending to show the character of drug administered in the candy, and then we would be enabled to determine whether or not the court was justified in admitting testimony concerning cantharides. White’s Ann. Code Crim. Proc., sec. 1123, subdivs. 2, 4. Of course it will be conceded, if there was no testimony concerning the nature of the drug, or not sufficient as tending to show that the drug alleged to have been administered was cantharides, then the court erred in admitting any testimony, expert or otherwise, in regard to the effect that cantharides would have on a female 17 years of age.

What has been said above with regard to these bills also applies to bills of exception numbers 8 and 9, which relate to experiments before the jury with regard to the absorption of cantharides dropped on lumps of candy. It may be observed, in this connection, that the prosecution depended on the administration by appellant of cantharides in- lumps of candy, claimed by the State to have been given to prosecutrix; and if we recur to the statement of facts it is doubtful, to our minds, whether there was sufficient testimony to authorize the introduction of experiments and testimony in regard to the administration of this drug and the effect produced on females of the age and condition of prosecutrix. But, as stated, we are not authorized to refer to the statement of facts to help out the bills of exception to the admission or rejection of testimony, in the absence of reference to the statement of facts in aid of such bills.

Bills of exception 3 and 4 relate to the action of the court permitting the State, in cross.-examination of defendant, to ask him in regard to his conduct with other girls; that is, if he had not been in the habit of having intercourse with other girls. He answered in the negative. Bills 5 and 6 show an attempt to impeach him by the introduction of witnesses, whom, it was alleged, would testify that he had told them such was his habit. All this testimony was objected to, on the ground that it was not competent to ask appellant such questions, the same not being relevant to any issue in the case. And even if it was permitted to cross-examine about such matters, it was not competent to impeach on his answers; and the attempt to impeach him was- calculated to prejudice him before the jury. We do not believe it was proper to have introduced the impeaching witness, as the examination of appellant was obviously upon an. immaterial issue. And placing witnesses on the stand by whom it was alleged appellant would be contradicted as to these matters, although the testimony was rejected, was calculated to make the jury believe he had lied in regard thereto; and where impeaching testimony is so obviously inadmissible, we are not prepared to say that the action of the court was without prejudice to appellant.

As presented in bill number 10 there was no error in admitting the testimony shown.

Appellant objected to the impeaching testimony of Boyd Wooten in *197 regard to how he reached Mrs. Phillips’ on the Sunday of the alleged offense. In appellant’s testimony, he swore that he walked from church to Mrs. Phillips’ to dinner. Boyd Wooten was introduced by the State to show that this was not true, but that he rode with witness in his wagon from church to Mrs. Phillips’ house on that occasion.

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Bluebook (online)
74 S.W. 916, 45 Tex. Crim. 193, 1903 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 138, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/baldridge-v-state-texcrimapp-1903.