Territory of New Mexico v. Cordova

11 N.M. 367
CourtNew Mexico Supreme Court
DecidedApril 25, 1902
DocketNo. 930
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 11 N.M. 367 (Territory of New Mexico v. Cordova) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Territory of New Mexico v. Cordova, 11 N.M. 367 (N.M. 1902).

Opinion

OPINION OP THE COURT.

MILLS, C. J.

1 The errors assigned are seven in number, of which the first, that “The court erred in admitting improper, irrelevant and incompetent evidence in the trial of said case,” is so general, that we will not consider it, for we have held in common with the general practice of appellate courts, that such a general assignment of error is not good ground for review. Territory v. Guillen, 66 Pac. 531; Cevada v. Miera, 61 Pac. 125; Neher v. Armijo, 66 Pac. 517.

The rule requiring that errors relied on, on appeal, should be separately pointed out before they will be considered by the appellate court is a wise one, for an attorney, who has tried a case is familiar with all of the facts and points raised on the trial, while it is practically impossible for this court to search through the entire record with the view of ferreting out what errors, if any, have been committed on the trial.

2 The second and third assignments we can consider as one, for they relate to the same matter, to-wit: that the court erred in stopping counsel for appellant while making his final argument of the jury, and saying in the presence and hearing of the jury, “the evidence is that both the deceased and defendant were facing each other at the time defendant fired.”

Just wha.t the counsel for the appellant was saying to the jury at the time the court made this remark does not appear in the record, although in the written opinion filed by the learned judge who tried the case below, in overruling the motion for a new trial, it appears that the counsel for the defendant in summing up, stated to the jury that at the time defendant fired the shot, the deceased had turned round, with his back towards defendant, while attempting to load his gun. Counsel taking an attitude before the jury, and illustrating how it supposedly occurred.

3 We do not see how this remark of the judge was against any statute or recognized rule of law. The attorney for the appellant contends that the remark of the court was a comment on the weight of the evidence and was thus in direct conflict with section 2994, of the Compiled Laws of 1897. That section is as. follows: “Before the argument is concluded either party may request instructions to the jury on points of law, which shall be given or refused by the court. All instructions asked and the charge of the court shall be in writing. The court shall instruct the jury as to the law of the case, and shall not comment upon the weight of the evidence.”

This statute we think relates entirely to instructions which are given by the court, and was intended no doubt to change the practice which exists in the- United States courts, Avhere the judge in giving his instructions, is allowed to comment freely on the evidence, and point-out to the jury such parts of it as he thinks is entitled to consideration at their hands. We do not think that it was intended to prohibit the court from calling the attention of counsel, when they were addressing the jury, to any inaccuracies or misstatements which may inadvertently have crept into their remarks. It is a well-settled rule that counsel in addressing juries must keep strictly to the facts (State v. Comstock, 20 Kan. 655), and they have no- right to state to the jury as facts, matters which the evidence does not bear out, and if the court thinks that counsel do go- outside of the record in addressing the jury, it is proper for the court to-call their attention to what he thinks the evidence really is, so as to permit counsel to correct themselves. We cannot see that in this case the court did any thing else.

The language used by counsel in áddressing the jury is not disclosed by the record, but it is perfectly evident that he was, or that at least the court thought that he was misleading the jury by a misstatement of the evidence, and believing this, whether mistakenly or not, we think that it was perfectly proper for the court to call the attention of counsel to what he thought really was the evidence. When we say that the court thought that counsel was misleading the jury by a misstatement of the evidence, we do not mean to be understood as intimating that counsel was doing so intentionally, for nothing could be further from our minds, but rather that in his zeal to guard his client’s interests, he inadvertently said something which the court thought was not warranted by the evidence.

In addition it nowhere appears in the record that counsel claimed tp- the court that the evidence in the cause showed otherwise than the court stated to' be, nor that he pointed out to the court any evidence to corroborate his statement to the jury. . We have examined a number of authorities cited by the learned counsel for the appellant in support of his contention, and all of those examined by us, relate to comments made by the court, on the evidence, in the giving of instructions to the jury, and they therefore do not apply to the facts in this case. These assignments therefore point out no error.

4 The fourth assignment is that the district attorney in addressing the jury said: “Gentlemen, the verdict of the people and the community is that the defendant is guilty,” to which counsel for appellant then and there excepted, and asked that it be taken from the jury, but that it was not so taken from the jury.

We can not see that the'use of the language complained of by the district attorney was such as would justify us in reversing this case. In both the cases of Chacon v. Territory, 7 N. M. 247, and Territory v. Chamberlain, 8 N. M. 524, equally as strong language was used, but this court held1 that the cases should not be reversed therefor. As stated in the case of Chacon v. Territory, supra,, the “trial court enjoys peculiar facilities for observing the propriety of forensic arguments, and its discretion when invoked, should not be interfered with in the absence of obvious or probable injury.”

Let-us examine and see just what did happen. The record says, on page 103, “Be it also remembered that while George W. Pritchard, district attorney, was on behalf of the Territory addressing the jury, in said cause, he made the following remark to the jury in the said argument, to-wit: ‘Gentlemen, the verdict of the people and the community is that the defendant is guilty.’ Upon which statement being made, counsel for defendant addressed the court and excepted to the statement just made by the district attorney, as being improper argumept, and asked the court to have said statement taken from the jury, to which the court stated that the same would be taken from the jury, but court’s statement was not interpreted to the jury nor was anything else stated to the jury by the court.”

Nowhere does the record show that the sentence, alleged to be objectionable, uttered by the district attorney, was ever translated in Spanish and given to the jury, so that, such of them as did not understand the English language would comprehend what was said, and if the words were not so interpreted, and the presumption is, unless the contrary is shown by the record, that all of the acts of the presiding judge during a trial are regular and in accordance with the law. 2 Ency. P. and P., p. 420.

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Related

State v. Pace
456 P.2d 197 (New Mexico Supreme Court, 1969)

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Bluebook (online)
11 N.M. 367, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/territory-of-new-mexico-v-cordova-nm-1902.