R. B. MCFEETERS, PLAINTIFF IN ERROR,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, DEFENDANT IN ERROR
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The Florida Supreme Court reversed a manslaughter conviction, holding that the evidence presented was insufficient to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, and appeared to be influenced by the defendant's poor character.
No, the evidence was insufficient to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. The court found that the evidence at most constituted grave suspicion and was not substantial enough for a conviction.
“It is well settled that a verdict of guilty should not be based upon guesswork or suspicion.”
Establishes the legal principle that convictions require more than mere suspicion.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe plaintiff in error was convicted of manslaughter following the death of a woman with whom he had an improper relationship. The accused was describ…
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Bueord, J.
In this case the plaintiff in error was convicted of manslaughter, for which offense he was informed against by the county solicitor of Dade county, following the death of a woman with whom he had maintained an improper alliance. The record shows the accused to have been a depraved person whose manner of living and whose general conduct was a reproach, to the community in which he lived and a disgrace to the profession to which he belonged, and it appears to us that the verdict of the jury was largely influenced by consideration of these facts.
It is well settled that a verdict of guilty should not be based upon guesswork or suspicion. A careful consideration of the record discloses that at most the evidence in this ease may have constituted a basis for grave suspicion of the guilt of the accused, but we find that the evidence falls far short .of being sufficient to establish the guilt of the accused beyond a reasonable doubt. We are convinced that if the accused had been a physician of good moral character and of proper habits of life a jury would not have returned a verdict of guilty against him upon the identical evidence touching.his treatment of the deceased in her last illness. We do not find in the record substantial evidence of the guilt of the accused of the offense for which he was convicted and, therefore, the judgment must be reversed. It is so ordered.
Reversed.
Whitfield, P. J., .and Terrell, J., concur. Strum and Brown, J. J., concur in the opinion and judgment.
Ellis, C. J., not participating.
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Armstrong v. State, 107 Fla. 494 (Fla. 1933)…hen based on guesswork or suspicion and that where the evidence considered as a whole entirely fails to disclose any subtantial proof of material fact necessary to be alleged and proved a judgment of conviction will be reversed. McFeeters vs. State, 96 Fla. 660, 118 Sou. Rep. 919; Smith v. State, [*497] 101 Fla. 162, 133 Sou. Rep. 873; Hall vs. State, 90 Fla. 719, 107 Sou. Rep. 246; Adams v. State, 96 Fla. 356, 118 Sou. Rep. 204; Deiterle vs. State, 101 Fla. 79, 134 Sou. Rep. 42. The jury acquitted the de…
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Scaglione v. State, 62 So. 2d 417 (Fla. 1953)…914. We think that a verdict based on such’ evidence can only be the product of guesswork and speculation on the part of the jury, and we have many times held that judgments based on such verdicts must be reversed by this court. McFeeters v. State, 96 Fla. 660, 118 So. 919; Smith v. State, 101 Fla. 1066, 132 So. 840; Armstrong v. State, 107 Fla. 494, 145 So. 212. [*418] Accordingly, the judgment appealed from should be and it is hereby reversed and the cause remanded for a new trial. Reversed and remanded…