W. R. ASHER, PLAINTIFF IN ERROR,
v.
THE STATE OF FLORIDA, DEFENDANT IN ERROR
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The Florida Supreme Court reversed a first-degree murder conviction, holding that circumstantial evidence must be conclusive and lead to a moral certainty of guilt, not just a strong probability.
No, the circumstantial evidence was not sufficient. The court held that circumstantial evidence must be conclusive and establish a moral certainty of guilt to support a conviction, especially in capital cases.
“Where circumstantial evidence is relied upon by the State for conviction in a criminal prosecution, the circumstances taken together must be of a conclusive nature and tendency leading on the whole to a satisfactory conclusion and producing in effect a moral certainty that the accused and no one else committed the offense, before a verdict of guilty is justified.”
establishes the standard for circumstantial evidence in criminal convictions.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe plaintiff in error was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death based entirely on circumstantial evidence. The court reviewed the s…
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Per Curiam.
The plaintiff in error was convicted of murder in the first degree and sentenced to capital punishment. Writ of error was taken. The evidence as to the guilt of the accused is entirely circumstantial.
Where circumstantial evidence is relied upon by the State for conviction in a criminal prosecution, the circumstances taken together must be of a conclusive nature and tendency leading on the whole to a satisfactory conclusion and pro-during in effect a moral certainty that the accused and no one else committed the offense, before a verdict of guilty is justified. It is not sufficient that the facts create only a strong probability of guilt. Pate v. State, 72 Fla. 97, 72 South. Rep. 517.
In a conviction for capital punishment where the evidence as to the identity of the accused is not satisfactory, a new trial should be granted. Platt v. State, 65 Fla. 253, 61 South. Rep. 502; Davis v. State, 76 Fla. 179, 79 South. Rep. 450.
Beversed for new trial.
West, C. J., and Whitfield, Terrell and Strum, J. J., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By (12 total)
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Leavine v. State, 109 Fla. 447 (Fla. 1933)…almost entirely circumstantial and that consisted of barely more than suspicious circumstances. The guilt of a person charged with crime must be established beyond a reasonable doubt, a strong probability of crime is not sufficient. Asher v. State, 90 Fla. 75, 105 South. Rep. 140; Cannon v. State, 91 Fla. 214, 107 South. Rep. 350; Hall v. State, 90 Fla. 719; 107 South. Rep. 246. In the case of Ford v. State, 80 Fla. 781, 86 South. Rep. 715, this Court held that where there is sufficient evidentiary basi…
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Head v. State, 62 So. 2d 41 (Fla. 1952)…stent with guilt. Such evidence must also be inconsistent with innocence. Hall v. State, 90 Fla. 719, 107 So. 246; Parish v. State, supra. Measured in the light most favorable to the State we cannot reach the conclusion, as stated in Asher v. State, 90 Fla. 75, 105 So. 140, which produces- “in effect a moral certainty that the accused and no one else committed the offense”. Reversed for a new trial. SEBRING, C. J., and ROBERTS and’ MATHEWS, JJ., concur.…
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McCall v. State, 120 Fla. 707 (Fla. 1935)…ent with, guilt. They must be inconsistent with guilt. They must be inconsistent with innocence. Parish v. State, 98 Fla. 877, 124 Sou. 444; Cannon v. State, 91 Fla. 214, 107 Sou. 360; Fall v. State, 90 Fla. 719, 107 Sou. 246; Asher v. State, 90 Fla. 75, 105 Sou. 140; Lee v. State, 96 Fla. 59, 117 So. 699; Davis v. State, 90 Fla. 816, 107 So. 245; Smith v. State, 101 Fla. 162, 133 So. 873; Simmons v. State, 99 Fla. 1215, 128 So. 486; Kennedy v. State, 31 Fla. 428, 12 So. 858; Gantling v. Stat…
Previewing 3 of 12 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Platt v. State, 65 Fla. 253 (Fla. 1913)
- Reuben Davis and Rachel Smith v. State, 76 Fla. 179 (Fla. 1918)
- Pate v. State, 72 Fla. 97 (Fla. 1916)
- Walker v. Lavinia Willis, 72 Fla. 119 (Fla. 1916)
- Graham v. Graham, 79 So. 450 (Ala. 1918)