People v. Godwin

California Supreme Court Jan 23, 1899 No. Crim. No. 403Published

Before: Garoutte

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Holding. A party may only impeach a witness with prior contradictory statements when the witness provides hostile evidence, and the trial court did not err in its evidentiary rulings or in restricting the reading of law books to the jury.

Issues

Whether a party may impeach a witness who provides negative testimony by introducing prior inconsistent statements.
Whether the trial court erred in its rulings on cross-examination and the reading of legal extracts to the jury.

Disposition. Affirmed

Quotations verified verbatim against the opinion

“It is only when the witness gives hostile evidence that a party may impeach him by showing contradictory statements made at other times.”

“The practice of reading law books to the jury is not a commendable one and this court has often so declared.”

Synopsis

Criminal Law—Seduction—Evidence—Chaste Character of Prosecutrix—Impeachment of Witness—Negative Statement.—Upon the trial of a defendant charged with the seduction of a female of previous chaste character under a promise of marriage, where a witness for the defendant, in answer to a direct question, testified that he never had had sexual intercourse with the prosecutrix, his answer being merely of a negative character, he cannot be impeached by proof of contrary statements to certain individuals.

Id.—Improper Cross-Examination—Waiver of Objection.—A witness who has testified on his direct examination only as to his personal acquaintance and relations with the prosecutrix, cannot properly be asked on cross-examination whether he had ever known of any improper conduct on her part; but if no objection to the question is presented on that ground, an answer of the witness merely reiterating a previous statement that he never had any improper relations with her, cannot harm the defendant, and the allowance of the question is not ground of reversal.

Id.—Reading Legal Decision to Jury—Appeal—Error not Shown.— The practice of reading law-books m the jury is not commendable; and where extracts from a decision of this court were sought to be read to the jury by the defendant’s counsel, and the record is silent as to the character of the extract sought to be read, no error can be predicated upon the action of the court in refusing to permit the extracts to be read.

GAROUTTE, J. Defendant has been convicted of the seduction of a female of previous chaste character, under a promise of marriage, and now prosecutes this appeal. Rulings upon the admissibility of evidence are mainly relied upon for a new trial.

Defendant placed one St. Clair upon the witness stand, and in answer to a direct question he testified that he never had had sexual intercourse with the prosecutrix. He was thereupon asked if he had not at several specific times and places stated to certain individuals that he had had such intercourse with the prosecutrix. Objections were sustained to these questions, and such rulings are now insisted upon as error. The action of the trial court has full support .in the law. It is only when the witness gives hostile evidence that a party may impeach him by showing contradictory statements made at other times. The answer of the witness being "no,” the evidence was purely of a negative character. It was neither favorable to one side nor the other, and, if the witness had been impeached, the case before the jury would have assumed no different aspect. The only purpose in any case of introducing the inconsistent and contradictory statements of the witness is to cast doubt and distrust upon the evidence he has previously given. As already suggested, if this witness had been impeached, either by inconsistent statements or general bad [376]reputation for veracity, the result would simply have heen that the evidence he gave would have been cast out. There would have been no evidence before the jury that in fact he had had intercourse with the prosecutrix. In other words, his answer to the question addressed to him by counsel for defendant being "no,” it neither weakened nor strengthened the case. After impeachment the case would have stood exactly the same as before. This principle is well settled by the authorities found in the reports of this state. (People v. Conkling, 111 Cal. 616; People v. Crespi, 115 Cal. 50.)

The witness St. Clair, upon cross-examination, was asked the following question: "Q. During the time you knew her, or at any time, have you ever known of any improper conduct on her part?” In direct examination the witness only testified as to his personal acquaintance and relations with the prosecutrix. For this reason the matter inquired about was not proper cross-examination. While various objections were made to the question, there was no objection upon this ground, and for this reason the ruling of the court in admitting the answer probably was not error. In addition it appears the witness answered the question by saying that he never had had any improper relations with the prosecutrix. This answer was only a repetition of a statement he had previously made several times, and no possible harm to defendant could have been caused by it.

People v. Godwin

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