RUBY JEAN HODELLA
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA
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The Florida Supreme Court affirmed a conviction for manslaughter, holding that evidence sufficient for a first-degree murder conviction was also sufficient for a lesser homicide charge. The court found no reversible error in the trial.
Yes, the evidence was sufficient to sustain a conviction for manslaughter. Evidence sufficient for a first-degree murder conviction inherently supports convictions for lesser degrees of unlawful homicide.
“The burden of appellant's contention is that the evidence showed that the appellant was either guilty of murder in the first degree or guilty of nothing more than justifiable homicide.”
This quote states the appellant's main argument on appeal.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceRuby Jean Hodella was charged with second-degree murder but was convicted of manslaughter. She appealed, arguing that the evidence presented at trial …
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Appellant being informed against for the crime of murder in the second degree, was convicted of manslaughter and perfected her appeal to this court.
The burden of appellant’s contention is that the evidence showed that the appellant was either guilty of murder in the first degree or guilty of nothing more than justifiable homicide.
We entertain the view that the evidence was sufficient to have sustained a conviction of murder in the first degree and it, therefore, was sufficient to sustain a conviction of any lesser degree of unlawful homicide. See Ammons v. State, 88 Fla. 444, 102 So. 642; Morrison v. State, 42 Fla. 149, 28 So. 97; Owens v. State, 65 Fla. 483, 62 So. 651; Stone v. State, 57 Fla. 28, 48 So. 996; Dedge v. State, 68 Fla. 240, 67 So. 43; Johnson v. State, 24 Fla. 162, 4 So. 535, approved and distinguished in Marshall v. State, 32 Fla. 462, 14 So. 92; Brown v. State, 31 Fla. 207, 12 So. 640.
No reversible error being made to appear, the judgment is affirmed.
So ordered.
CHAPMAN, C. J., BROWN, J., and BARNS, Circuit Judge, concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
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Brown v. State, 206 So. 2d 377 (Fla. 1968)…erdict of guilty of the offense charged, the jury has the power, under § 919.14 to find the accused guilty óf a lesser degree of the offense regardless of the lack of evidence as to such degree. Killen v. State, supra; Hodella v. State, 158 Fla. 94, 27 So. 2d 674 (1946). Under the statute, the trial judge should, and if requested must, instruct on all lesser degrees of the offense, if the case is allowed to go to the jury for a determination of guilt or innocence on the offense charged. Brown v. State, 124 S…
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Coppolino v. State, 223 So. 2d 68 (Fla. 2d DCA 1968)…erdict of guilty of the offense charged, the jury has the power, under § 919.14 to find the accused guilty of a lesser degree of the offense regardless of the lack of evidence as to such degree. Killen v. State, supra; Hodella v. State, 158 Fla. 94, 27 So. 2d 674 (1946). Under the statute, the trial judge should, and if requested must, instruct on all lesser degrees of the offense, if the case is allowed to go to the jury for a determination of guilt or innocence on the offense charged. Brown v. State, 124 S…
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Killen v. State, 92 So. 2d 825 (Fla. 1957)…ficient to support a verdict of guilty of the degree of the offense charged, the jury has the power to find the defendant guilty of a lesser degree of the offense, irrespective of the evidence as to such lesser degree. Hodella v. State, 158 Fla. 94, 27 So. 2d 674. However, the statute goes further. The last sentence requires that in “all such cases” the court shall charge the jury as to the degrees of the offense. The words “all such cases” refer to those cases previously described in the statute, and those…
Previewing 3 of 6 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Owens v. State, 65 Fla. 483 (Fla. 1913)
- Morrison v. State, 42 Fla. 149 (Fla. 1900)
- Ammons v. State, 88 Fla. 444 (Fla. 1924)
- Marshall v. State, 32 Fla. 462 (Fla. 1893)
- Johnson v. State, 24 Fla. 162 (Fla. 1888)
- Brown v. State, 31 Fla. 207 (Fla. 1893)
- Dedge v. State, 68 Fla. 240 (Fla. 1914)
- Hester Stone v. State, 57 Fla. 28 (Fla. 1909)