State v. . Livingston

164 S.E. 337, 202 N.C. 809, 1932 N.C. LEXIS 230

• Court: Supreme Court of North Carolina
• Decided: June 15, 1932
• Status: Published

Opinion

Stact, C. J.

The confession of the defendants made under the inducement that the chances were “it would be lighter on them” if they would say they got the property, coupled with the remark of the officer, “it looks like you had about as well tell it,” must be regarded as arising out of circumstances which render it involuntary, and, therefore, incompetent as evidence against appellant. S. v. Myers, ante, 381; S. v. Whitener, 191 N. C., 659, 132 S. E., 603; S. v. Jones, 145 N. C., 466, 59 S. E., 353; S. v. Horner, 139 N. C., 603, 52 S. E., 136.

Almost the identical question here presented, certainly the same in principle, was decided in S. v. Davis, 125 N. C., 612, 34 S. E., 198, S. v. Drake, 82 N. C., 593, S. v. Dildy, 72 N. C., 325, S. v. Whitfield, 70 N. C., 356, S. v. Matthews, 66 N. C., 106, S. v. Lawhorne, 66 N. C., 638.

A free and voluntary confession is deserving of the highest credit, because it is presumed to flow from the strongest sense of guilt, but a confession wrung from the mind by the flattery of hope, or by the torture of fear, comes in such questionable shape as to merit no consideration. S. v. Patrick, 48 N. C., 443.

Speaking to the subject in S. v. Roberts, 12 N. C., 259, Henderson, J., said: “Confessions are either voluntary or involuntary. They are called voluntary when made neither under the influence of hope or fear, but are attributable to that love of truth which predominates in the breast of every man, not operated upon by other motives more powerful with him, and which, it is said, in the perfectly good man cannot be countervailed. These confessions are the highest evidences of truth, even in cases affecting life. But it is said, and said with truth, that confessions induced by hope or extorted by fear are, of all kinds of evidence, the least to be relied on, and are therefore entirely to be rejected.”

Voluntary confessions are admissible in evidence against the party making them; involuntary confessions are not. A confession is voluntary in law when — and only when — it was in fact voluntarily made. S. v. Newsome, 195 N. C., 552, 143 S. E., 187.

New trial.