People v. Hoffman

232 P. 974, 195 Cal. 295, 1925 Cal. LEXIS 372
CourtCalifornia Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 23, 1925
DocketDocket No. Crim. 2711.
StatusPublished
Cited by25 cases

This text of 232 P. 974 (People v. Hoffman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Hoffman, 232 P. 974, 195 Cal. 295, 1925 Cal. LEXIS 372 (Cal. 1925).

Opinions

LENNON, J.

In this case the defendant was convicted of murder in the second degree. The appeal from the judgment was heard and determined in the first instance by the district court of appeal, second district, second division, which reversed the judgment solely upon the ground that the trial court erred, to the prejudice of the defendant, in admitting in evidence testimony that the reputation of the deceased for peace and quiet was good.

The point is presented for the first time to this court that the answer to the question propounded to the prosecution’s character witness, “Do you know his [deceased’s] reputation in the community in which he lived for peace and quiet?” was not responsive to the question and, therefore, in the absence of a motion to strike out the answer, the error of the trial court in overruling the objection to the question cannot be availed of by the defendant upon appeal.

*301 The record discloses in this behalf that counsel for the defendant objected to the question propounded upon the ground that the testimony sought to be elicited thereby was, “incompetent, irrelevant and immaterial and not proper rebuttal testimony . , . the ' character of the deceased not being in issue and not having been raised by the defense.” The trial court sustained the objection. Thereupon the district attorney said, “May it please the court, they claim that he [deceased] came at the defendant in a threatening manner.” "Whereupon the trial court, after having the question read by the reporter, overruled the objection. Thereupon the witness, without saying whether or not he knew the reputation of the deceased in the particular stated, proceeded to, and did, testify that, “Jack [the deceased] had a very good reputation around Pomona for peace and quiet; while I knew him I never knew him to swear in front of a woman in any way; he did not use vulgar language, profane language, at any time I know of.”

It is certain that if a motion to strike out the answer upon the ground that it was not responsive had been made it would have been granted. The witness doubtless would then have answered the question in the affirmative and it is equally certain that the trial court, despite the objection, would then have permitted the witness to give in evidence his knowledge of the reputation of the deceased for peace and quiet. The court and the witness were fairly notified by the question propounded, even though it called for a categorical answer, that the purpose of the prosecutor was to establish in evidence the reputation of the deceased for peace and quiet. The witness evidently apprehending that purpose at once answered with the desired response. It will thus be seen that only by a super-technical treatment of the situation could the answer be held to be not responsive, and that it would have been an idle act for the defendant to have moved to strike out the answer. In such a situation it cannot be fairly held that the defendant waived his objection to the evidence complained of.

We. are satisfied with the court of appeal’s statement of the rule, as it exists in this jurisdiction, relative to the admissibility of evidence concerning the reputation of the deceased for peace and quiet in homicide cases where the *302 defense of self-defense is interposed. We are also satisfied with the conclusion reached by the court of appeal that-it was prejudicial error in the situation presented by the evidence in the instant ease, for the trial court to permit in evidence, over the objection of the defendant, testimony tending to establish the reputation of the deceased for peace and quiet. Conceding that the defendant did seek to assail the good reputation of the deceased, nevertheless, the fact remains that he was not permitted to do so and, therefore, the reputation of the deceased was not in issue. A review of the evidence satisfies us that the error of the trial court in the particular stated contributed materially to the verdict.

A review of the evidence also satisfies us that the court of appeal was correct in its conclusion that instructions numbered XIY and XV, which apparently were given upon the court’s own motion, and which, although substantially correct in the statement of abstract propositions of law, were inapplicable to the evidence in the case or any issue raised by' the evidence in the case and were, therefore, well calculated to be misleading and confusing. The giving of these instructions was, therefore, error which must in a measure have contributed to the verdict and the court of appeal may well have placed its reversal of the judgment in part upon the giving of these instructions. (See People v. Roe, 189 Cal. 548 [209 Pac. 560].)

The ruling of the trial court which permitted the prosecution to have in evidence by way of rebuttal over a pertinent and proper objection of the defendant, testimony to the effect that a certain witness had never seen the deceased carry a weapon was prejudicial error. (People v. Powell, 87 Cal. 348, 362 [11 L. R. A. 75, 25 Pac. 481].) The error was not rendered harmless by the fact that the people had previously put in evidence, as they were entitled to do under the defense made in the instant case, testimony that, as a matter of fact, the deceased was not armed at the time of the killing. While it is true that this testimony stands uncontradicted by any direct evidence, still defendant testified that after he fired one shot into the air the deceased advanced toward him with profanity on his lips and one hand on his hip pocket as if about to draw a weapon. Obviously that was a circumstance which the jury might well have weighed in determining whether or not the deceased was *303 unarmed at the time of the killing1 and the credibility of the prosecution’s witnesses in this particular should have been left for the determination of the jury without the fortification of inadmissible evidence. It has been suggested that the testimony complained 'of was harmless because it “could have no effect other than to bolster up the witness’ testimony that” the deceased “was unarmed at the time of the homicide.” That doubtless was its effect and therefore it must have influenced the jury in accepting, as the truth, the prosecution’s testimony that the deceased was unarmed at the time of the killing.

Numerous other points have been made in support of the appeal which have been adequately and correctly disposed of by the court of appeal in an opinion by Mr. Presiding Justice Finlayson, which we hereby adopt as the opinion of this court:

“The killing, which was admitted, was claimed to have been done in self-defense. The facts, so far as they are necessary to an understanding of the questions presented for our consideration, are substantially as follows: At the date of the homicide, May 29, 1923, defendant, a man fifty-three years of age and a rancher in Imperial Valley, was living with his wife on leased premises. One Donald Cornelison, a lad seventeen years of age, had been employed by defendant as a ranch-hand, quitting the employment after having worked but a day and a half. "While he thus was working for defendant Cornelison stated in defendant’s presence that he (Cornelison) had been in jail in Santa Ana and Los Angeles. At about dusk on the evening of the day when he quit defendant’s employ, Cornelison and two companions, James H.

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Bluebook (online)
232 P. 974, 195 Cal. 295, 1925 Cal. LEXIS 372, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-hoffman-cal-1925.