State v. Merlo

173 P. 317, 92 Or. 678
CourtOregon Supreme Court
DecidedJune 18, 1919
StatusPublished
Cited by29 cases

This text of 173 P. 317 (State v. Merlo) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Oregon Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Merlo, 173 P. 317, 92 Or. 678 (Or. 1919).

Opinions

BEAN, J.

In the examination of thq witnesses for the state, it appears some evidence crept into the record tending to show that at times defendant was in the habit of using intoxicating liquor. Louis Merlo, a witness for the state, being interrogated as to Quarrels between the decedent and the defendant, was asked through an interpreter and answered as follows:

“Ask him what they quarreled about?”
Ans. “Every time Bosie drank there was quarrels.”
Ques. “Every time Bosie drank there was quarreling?”
Ans. “Yes, sir.”

"When Letizia Partipillo, a witness for the state, was testifying and was being cross-examined by the attorney for the defense, the following questions were given and the following answers made. Beferring to the deceased, the following question was asked:

“Never drank?”
Ans. “We used to drink at the table a little wine but he was nev,er drunk here or in the old country.”
Ques. “And Bosie was always drunk?”
Ans. “Yes, sir, especially when she would go to Beaverton or Portland, or to her father’s house she would never come home until half-past 1 or 2 o ’clock after midnight.”
Ques. “And your father never got drunk?”

There was no objection to this testimony, and it is referred to as an introduction or foundation for some of the other evidence in regard to the use of intoxicating liquor by the defendant.

The defense was that the killing was> done in self-defense. Upon the trial of the case, the state called as a witness, one Luigi Beggi, who testified that he ate his meals with defendant and her husband; that the defendant and the decedent used to quarrel; that he [683]*683did not know who started the quarrel. The witness was then asked by the district attorney:

“Q. Do I understand you to say that you don’t know which one generally started the quarrel and when they quarreled?
“A. No.
“Q. You remember of being in the grand jury room, don’t you?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. When this case was being investigated, you remember that time?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. And the grand jury and myself being present, didn’t you at that time and place in the first part of November, I think it was, make this statement?
“A. Yes, sir, I know it.
“Q. All the time they had troubles, Eosa all the time, started, she started first. Sometimes Joe run outside sometimes. She drink too much.”

The defendant by her attorney objected as follows:

“I object to that as being apparently and' plainly an attempt to impeach their own witness, ’ ’ and added: “He has not testified to anything against the prosecution and he has simply failed to testify as strongly as was wanted and I do not think they can impeach their witness that way.”

These objections were overruled and exception allowed, and the examination by the district attorney proceeded.

“Q. Didn’t you say at that time and place?
“A. I think so.
“Q. You say you said that?
“A. Yes, sir.
“Q. Was it true? (This question was again objected to, but the objection was overruled and the witness answered), ‘I guess so.’ .
“Q. Was it not true?
“A. Well, that is true.”

[684]*684It will be seen that the method of examination pursued with the witness served apparently to refresh his memory. No hearsay nor unsworn statements were admitted. Section 861, L. O. L., provides:

“The party producing a witness is not allowed to impeach his credit by evidence of bad character, but he may contradict him by other evidence, and may also show that he has made at other times statements inconsistent with his present testimony, as provided in Section 864. ’ ’

1. The state called the witness and under this section it was entitled, when the district attorney was surprised by the unexpected and unfavorable testimony, to call the attention of the witness to prior statements which were inconsistent with his present sworn testimony, together with the circumstances of time and place and persons present according to Section 864, L. O. L., in order to refresh the recollection of the witness and induce him to correct his testimony or explain the apparent inconsistency, and to ask the witness if he made such previous statements. Whether or not the examination of the witness was strictly within the rule in the cases of: Langford v. Jones, 18 Or. 307, 326 (22 Pac. 1064); State v. Steeves, 29 Or. 85, 104 (43 Pac. 947); State v. Yee Gueng, 57 Or. 509, 512 (112 Pac. 424); there was no attempt to show the bad character of the witness. No unsworn or prior declarations of the witness were admitted. No substantive evidence was received in that manner. These are the shoals to steer clear of in such matters: Wigan v. La Follett, 84 Or. 488, 496 (165 Pac. 579). None of the fatal results followed. It served as in the nature of a leading question to the witness tending to bring out the truth: State v. Deal, 43 Or. 17 (70 Pac. 534). There was no reversible error in permitting such examination.

[685]*6852-5. The most serious contention of the defendant is that: The state was allowed on rebuttal, to offer evidence that the defendant had been guilty of an independent crime. Luigi Beggi was a witness for the state. He was recalled as a witness on rebuttal, and testified through an interpreter, as follows:

“Q. Ask him if he knows anything about the time Bosa got a revolver and was going to kill his uncle?”

The defendant objected to this as irrelevant, immaterial, and not in rebuttal of any issue in this case, the objection was overruled and the exception allowed and the witness answered, “Yes, sir.”

“Q. Ask him to tell the jury about that.
“A. Yes, Davy’s brother was cleaning land, and1 Bosa came up and told him, Bosa said if he would not take back the words he said she would shoot him.”

There is nothing in this testimony or in the objection thereto, to attract the attention of the trial court to the fact that it was the intention of the district attorney to elicit evidence pertaining to any other crime than that charged in the indictment, or that the witness referred to any threat made by the defendant except against the decedent. In other words, it does not appear that the decedent, Joe Merlo, was not an uncle, or a so-called uncle, of the witness, Luigi Beggi. The testimony interpreted from Italian to English is difficult to understand.

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Bluebook (online)
173 P. 317, 92 Or. 678, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-merlo-or-1919.