JIM GREEN ALIAS JIM MCQUEEN, PLAINTIFF IN ERROR,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, DEFENDANT IN ERROR
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
Jim Green was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death in Duval County circuit court. On appeal, the Florida Supreme Court affirmed the conviction, rejecting arguments that the grand jury's recall was improper and that the evidence was insufficient to support the verdict.
The court held that recalling and reempaneling a discharged grand jury during the same court term is lawful and proper, objections to grand jury legality must be raised by plea in abatement before trial, challenges to jury selection must be made before trial by challenge to the array, and the evidence sustained the murder verdict.
“The formal order made by the judge recalling the grand jury and requiring them to reassemble and re-empanelling and reswearing them was tantamount to a vacation of the former order discharging them.”
Establishes that no separate formal vacation order was necessary when recalling a grand jury.
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceGreen was indicted for murder in the first degree by a grand jury that had been discharged and then recalled, reempaneled, and resworn during the same…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse First Degree Murder cases and more on FLexlaw
Taylor, J.
The plaintiff in error was indicted, tried and convicted for the crime of murder in the first degree in the circuit court for Duval county, and sentenced to death, and brings this judgment here for review by writ of error. The first assignment of error that we shall notice is the denial of the defendant’s motion in arrest of judgment. This motion was predicated on the following state of facts: The grand jury that presented the indictment against the defendant, having completed their labors had been discharged by the court, but during the same term of the court, by an order of the court, were recalled, reempanelled and resworn, and then investigated the case against the defendant and found and returnedi the indictment upon which he was tried. It is contended here that the trial judge should by a formal order have first vacated in terms his former order discharging the grand jury, and then have ordered their recall. This contention is hyper-technical and cannot be sustained. The.formal order made by the judge recalling the grand jury and requiring them to reassemble and re-empanelling and reswearing them was tantamount to a vacation of the former order discharging them. That it is lawful and proper for a grand jury that has been discharged or dismissed by the court to be recalled and reassembled during the same term of the court, and that indictments then returned by them are validi, is abundantly sustained by the authorities. 17 Am. & Eng. Ency. Law, p. 1298; 20 Cyc. 1324; Hayes v. State, 93 Miss., 670, 47 South. Rep., 522; Newman v. State, 43 Texas, 525. But besides this it is settled law here that all objections to the legality of grand jurors must be made by a plea in abatement to the indictment before pleading-in bar, by pleading in bar the defendant waives any irregularity that may have been taken advantage of by plea in abatement. Gladden v. State, 13 Fla., 623; Burroughs v. State, 17 Fla., 643, text 661; McQuillen v. State, 8 S. & M. (Miss.), 587; Colson v. State, 51 Fla., 19, 40 South. Rep., 183. The motion in arrest of judgment is also predicated on alleged irregularities in the drawing and selection of the trial jurors who tried the defendant. Such objections should have been urged by the defendant before going to trial, by a challenge to the array, it comes too late after verdict, and has no place in a motion for new trial or motion in arrest. The defendant went to trial before the jury that tried him without any objections, and thus waived any irregularity in the drawing, summoning and impanelling of such jurors. Thompson & Merriam on Juries, Sections 80, 294, 295 and 296, and authorities cited.
The next assignment of error that we will discuss is the denial of the defendant’s motion for new trial made upon the ground that the verdict of conviction is not supported by the evidence in the cause. We have carefully considered the entire evidence adduced and are of opinion that it sustains the verdict returned. Upon the question of premeditated design, it was shown in evidence that the defendant for a week before the homicide had harbored ill feeling toward the deceased because of a petty indebtedness of fifty cents that he claimed the deceased owed him, and that it was chiefly because of this that he committed the act of killing him.
Finding no error, the judgment of the circuit court in said cause is hereby affirmed at the cost of Duval county, the défendant having been adjudged to be insolvent.
Whitfield, C. J., and Shackleford, Cockrell and Hocker, J. J., concur. Parkhill thinks this a case of manslaughter.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By (14 total)
-
State v. Silva, 259 So. 2d 153 (Fla. 1972)…e after verdict and has no place in a motion for new trial or in arrest of judgment. By going to trial before a jury without any objections, a defendant waives all irregularity in the drawing, summoning and impaneling of such jurors. Green v. State, 60 Fla. 22, 53 So. 610 (1910); Lake v. State, 100 Fla. 386, 129 So. 833 (1930); 14 F.L.P., Jury, § 111; 20 Fla.Jur., Juries, § 68. In answer to the first question, the United States Supreme Court has held that it is not legally permissible for jury commission…
-
Forrest Lake v. State, 100 Fla. 373 (Fla. 1930)…ement. Such irregularities cannot be taken advantage of by motion in' arrest of judgment or motion for a new trial. Gladden v. State, 13 Fla. 623; Burroughs v. State, 17 Fla. 643, text 661; Colson v. State, 51 Fla. 19, 40 So. R. 183; Green v. State, 60 Fla. 22, 53 So. R. 610, text 611; Hicks v. State, 97 Fla., 199, 120 So. R. 330. [*382] It is next contended that the plaintiff in' error having been indicted as accessory before the fact, it was error to place him on trial without the principal felon, A. R.…
-
Delbert Tibbs v. State, 337 So. 2d 788 (Fla. 1976)…e after verdict and has no place in a motion for new trial or in arrest of judgment. By going to trial before a jury without any objections, a defendant waives all irregularity in the drawing, summoning and impaneling of such jurors. Green v. State, 60 Fla. 22, 53 So. 610 (1910); Lake v. State, 100 Fla. 386, 129 So. 833 (1930); 14 F.L.P., Jury, § 111; 20 Fla.Jur., Juries, § 68.” Appellant contends that the introduction into evidence of the police report which included results of a polygraph test given to…
Previewing 3 of 14 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Colson v. State, 51 Fla. 19 (Fla. 1906)
- Burroughs v. State, 17 Fla. 643 (Fla. 1880)
- Silas Gladden v. State, 13 Fla. 623 (Fla. 1869)