In re Carlson

186 N.W. 722, 176 Wis. 538, 1922 Wisc. LEXIS 175
CourtWisconsin Supreme Court
DecidedApril 11, 1922
StatusPublished
Cited by41 cases

This text of 186 N.W. 722 (In re Carlson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wisconsin Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Carlson, 186 N.W. 722, 176 Wis. 538, 1922 Wisc. LEXIS 175 (Wis. 1922).

Opinion

The following opinion was filed February 7, 1922:

Rosenberry, J.

The petitioner alleges that the commitment is void and assigns four grounds upon which the allegation is based:

First. Because the information does riot charge the defendant with first-degree murder as defined by our statute.

Second. That the plea of guilty does not supply nor cure this defect.

Third. That the court has no jurisdiction of the premises to pronounce sentence as it did under the information.

Fourth. That the court had no jurisdiction in the prem- • ises.

We shall first consider whether the information charges Carl 0. Carlson with murder in the..first degree, for if he aided and abetted another in the commission of the offense charged, under our law he is guilty as a principal. Secs. 4613 and 4614, Stats.

Sec. 4660, Stats. “In indictments or informations for murder or manslaughter it shall not be necessary to set forth the manner in which or the means by which the death of the deceased was caused, but it shall be sufficient in any indictment or information for murder to charge that the accused did wilfully, feloniously and of his malice aforethought kill [543]*543and murder the deceased; and in any indictment or information for manslaughter it shall be sufficient to charge that the accused did feloniously kill and slay the deceased.”

The language used in the information is “the felonious and wilful murder of one Antonio Pingitore.” The question presented is, Are the words “the felonious and wilful murder” equivalent to the language of sec. 4660, which requires the information to charge that the accused “did wil-fully, feloniously and of his malice aforethought kill and murder” Antonio Pingitore? Prior to 1531 there was in England only one form of felonious homicide, being that now known as manslaughter. In this was included the malicious killing, since termed murder. By the statute of 23 Henry VIII, c. 1, par. 3, there was taken from those who committed wilfully and of malice aforethought benefit of clergy, and to this offense the name of murder was subsequently given, and upon this statute the distinction between murder and manslaughter has ever since rested, both in England and in this country. 3 Bishop, New Crim. Proc. (2d ed.) p.‘1527. Thereafter in indictments the phrase “wilfully and of malice aforethought” was used to distinguish indictments for murder from those for manslaughter, “for,” says Hawkifis, “unless these words appear the offender was entitled to benefit of clergy. In other words, the charge was only manslaughter.” 2 Hawkins, P. C. c. 33, sec. 25. While in the statute of 23 Henry VIII the word “wilfully” appears with the words “and of malice aforethought,” in the subsequent statute, 1 Edward VI, c. 12, par. 10, which is a re-enactment of the statute of Henry VIII, the word “wilfully” was omitted for the reason that it was included within the term “malice aforethought.” It has been held in a large number of cases that the words “malice aforethought,” or their equivalent, are indispensable to an information or indictment charging murder in the first degree. 3 Bishop, New Crim. Proc. (2d ed.) p. 1552, and [544]*544cases there cited. See Nicholson’s Case, 1 East, P. C. 346; Etheridge v. State, 141 Ala. 29, 37 South. 337; Comm. v. Davis, 11 Pick. 432; Comm. v. Webster, 5 Cush. 295, 52 Am. Dec. 711; Comm. v. Chapman, 11 Cush. 422; State v. Brown, 168 Mo. 449, 68 S. W. 568; State v. Woodward, 191 Mo. 617, 90 S. W. 90.

In this state murder is recognized, treated, and punished as an offense by the common law of which the statute is merely declaratory. Hogan v. State, 30 Wis. 428, at p. 435; Pliemling v. State, 46 Wis. 516 (1 N. W. 278) at p. 519.

In State v. Fee, 19 Wis. 562, it was held that in indictments for murder it must be stated that the defendant felo-niously, of his malice aforethought, did kill and murder deceased, for without the terms “malice aforethought” and the artificial phrase “murder” the indictments will be taken to charge manslaughter only. Under some statutes the words “of malice aforethought,” or their equivalent, have been dispensed with. Johnson v. People, 33 Colo. 224, 80 Pac. 133; Williams v. State, 45 Fla. 128, 34 South. 279; Lindsey v. State, 69 Ohio St. 215, 69 N. E. 126; State v. Johnny Tommy, 19 Wash. 270, 53 Pac. 157.

In Allen v. State, 85 Wis. 22, 54 N. W. 999, the word “wilfully” appears to have been omitted from the information in the case. The court says:

“This is one of the few technical words which the statute (sec. 4660, R. S.) retains, and seems to indicate as necessary in an information for murder. What effect this omission might have even were the verdict complete, was not discussed and is not necessary to be decided, but we deem it proper to call attention to the omission.”

By ch. 137 of the Lal^s of 1871 (now sec. 4669, Stats.) it was held when the offense charged has been created by any statute or the punishment of such offense has been declared by any statute, the indictment or information shall, after verdict, be held sufficient to warrant the punishment prescribed by the statute if it describe the offense in the [545]*545words of the statute or in words of substantially the same meaning. It was held in Kilkelly v. State, 43 Wis. 604, that the act did not dispense with the necessity of averring in an indictment or information for. murder that the accused did wilfully, feloniously, and of his malice aforethought kill and murder the deceased.

Wilfully, when used in the description of criminal acts, involves evil intent or legal malice (Brown v. State, 137 Wis. 543, 119 N. W. 338), as well as knowledge of the character of the act or intent to do it. It has not, however, been held that it includes the element of premeditation essential to charge murder in the first degree. The words “malice aforethought,” or their equivalent, being by the statute as well as by the common law essential to an indictment or information for murder, we cannot, either upon reason or authority, hold that the use of the word “wilful” supplies the necessary element of premeditation, which must always be present in a valid information or indictment for murder in the first degree. While the conclusion reached by this court in Hogan v. State, 30 Wis. 428, that the words “of malice aforethought” are sufficient to charge the necessary element of premeditated design, may be subject to some criticism (3 Bishop, New Crim. Proc. (2d ed.) § 575), it is nevertheless the established law of this state, and in this opinion the words “malice aforethought” are used as including under our statute the element of premeditated design when used in discussing the sufficiency of an information under, our law.

It is considered, therefore, that the information in this case did not charge the accused with aiding and abetting the commission of the crime of murder in the first degree. We must therefore consider whether or not it charged the defendant with aiding or abetting the commission of homicide in any degree, either of murder or manslaughter, for if the information charged no offense the court had no jurisdiction to proceed to judgment.

[546]*546Sec. 7, art. I, of the constitution provides:

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
186 N.W. 722, 176 Wis. 538, 1922 Wisc. LEXIS 175, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-carlson-wis-1922.