§ 23A-24-2 — Order of proceedings at trial.

After a jury has been impaneled and sworn, a trial must proceed in the following order: (1) If the indictment or information is for a felony, the clerk or prosecuting attorney must read it and state the plea of the defendant to the jury. In all other cases this formality may be dispensed with; (2) The prosecuting attorney or other counsel for the state must make an opening statement and offer the evidence in support of the indictment or information; (3) The defendant or his counsel may then open his defense and offer his evidence in support thereof. However, the defendant or his counsel may make his opening statement immediately after the prosecuting attorney's opening statement; (4) The parties may then, respectively, offer rebutting evidence only, unless the court, for good reason, in furtherance of justice or to correct an evident oversight, permits them to offer evidence upon their original case; (5) The judge must then charge the jury; he may state the issues and must declare the law, but must not instruct the jury in respect to matters of fact; and except as otherwise specially provided in this title all instructions and requests for instructions shall be governed by the law relating thereto in civil actions, except that all requests for instructions must be made before argument to the jury is begun and all objections to the giving or refusing of any instructions must be taken and called to the attention of the court before the jury retires, unless the court shall otherwise direct; and (6) When the evidence is concluded, unless the case is submitted to the jury on either side, or on both sides, without argument, the prosecuting attorney shall open and the defendant or his counsel shall follow; then the prosecuting attorney shall conclude the argument to the jury.

Legislative History

Supreme Court Rule 396, 1939; SDC 1939 & Supp 1960, § 34.3627; SDCL, § 23-42-6; SL 1978, ch 178, § 302.