Opinion

State v. Payne

  • 25 Wash. 2d 407
  • 171 P.2d 227
  • 1946 Wash. LEXIS 404
Court
Washington Supreme Court
Filed
Jul 13, 1946
Status
Published
Author
Connelly
On the bench
Connelly, Mallery
Cited by
28 cases
Authority
More cited than 2.3%

The opinion

Connelly, J.

(dissenting) — I dissent for the reason that I feel that the “verbal acts” rule, approved in

State v. Power,

24 Wash. 34 , 63 Pac. 1112 , as permitting testimony explanatory of the condition of the

deceased,

her destination, and her appointment with a physician, has been unduly extended in this case to include pure hearsay. The deceased girl’s mother was permitted to testify, over appellant’s objection, to a .conversation had with the daughter on the day preceding her death. The portion of her testimony which I question is:

*419

“A. She said she wanted to come up to Everett; she had already seen the doctor

and he promised to do the work

and she wanted to come up here and have it done.” (Italics mine.)

No physician, accused by the mother of a deceased girl who has died from the effects of an abortion, can ever meet this type of testimony or escape its consequences. To my mind, it falls squarely within the hearsay rule and within the scope of every reason recognized by ancient and modern jurisprudence upon which the rule is grounded.

Millard, C. J., and Simpson, J., concur with Connelly, J.

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.

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