Opinion

Patterson v. State

  • 387 S.W.2d 390
  • 1965 Tex. Crim. App. LEXIS 1056
Court
Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas
Filed
Jan 6, 1965
Status
Published
Author
Woodley
On the bench
Morrison, McDonald, Woodley
Cited by
8 cases
Authority
More cited than 7.3%

The opinion

WOODLEY, Judge

(dissenting).

The majority reaffirm the holding in Washburn v. State, 299 S.W.2d 706 , that it is prejudicial error to permit the state ,to call a co-defendant to the stand and require him to claim his privilege and refuse to testify in the presence of the jury, and approve the rule quoted with approval in Washburn v. State: “Unless the witness has agreed to turn state’s evidence, the prosecution ought not to place him on the stand; to do so and wring from him a refusal to testify, affording to the jury an ■opportunity to consider the refusal as a circumstance of guilt, has been said to be ‘certainly prejudicial.’ ”

Despite the fact that Bohannon was represented by one of the counsel who represented the appellant, and he had not agreed to turn state’s evidence and it would Rave been prejudicial error for the state to have called him as a witness at appellant’s trial, the majority set aside her conviction upon the ground that one of her ■counsel was not permitted to argue the ■state’s failure to call Bohannon and commit the prejudicial error.

■ To such holding I respectfully dissent.,

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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