The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1885-10-28
THE JUDGE DELIVERS THE LAW.
JUDGE WALLACE CHARGES THE JURY.
The Requests to Charge.
lime: 7,N to S.3i-8S minutes.

Mr.. Foreman and Gentlemen Of the Jury:
The defendant John c. Ferguson stands
.S Sssn inter Ttsa P 5y ,be de e see w6loh p Is: " has
guilty by reason Of u~nsoundness OF mind at
the time Of the homicide" You have heard
the witnesses; the testimony has been given
to you under the requirements of our law.
From the testimony you are to eliminate the
truth. The1aw imposes upon me The duty 10
give you the legal rules that are applicable TO
the case. To these legal rules you are TO up
dict Of guilty or not guilty as you nay find.
The counsel has submitted some requests to
charge. That is a written statement OF legal
principles. have gone over them during the
progress of the arguments, and / Will read
them to you indicating 1T the same time what
is law, and at the same time what in
my opinion is not law, and after
! ha eSsr nnis hsIc gol ing 1 nnn' esn' 1ne 7 y fe9a aSsn
state TO you briefly what In my judgment are
the legal principles which are applicable to
the case, and ! may add that they are neither
Courts OF this State nan years ago.
The first request is as follows:
L The defendant is presumed by law to be sane ;
the presumption can be removed By him; and II the
evidence Of unsoundness Of mind preponderates he
Is entitled to an acquittal.
I charge you that is law.
Q. II the Jury believe from the preponderanoe of
evidence that the defendant was Of unsound mind ut
any time before the homicide, unsoundness of mind
at tho time Of the homicide ia presumed until the con.
trary is proved.
I do not charge you that. d not think
that Is the law.
ing under 9 delusion caused by unsOundness of mind
when he committed the homicide, and that he killed
Benedict while acting as he supposed IN selfdefence,
supposing that Benedict was attempting tO take away
his life or to tpaict great bodily harm, they must
Acquit him, even though the danger was wholly i'm
agihary.
I charge you that is law, and upon this
principles Mr.. Foreman and Gentlemen, when
q defendant stands charged In this Court with
the het charge ge.d that at he lee co ER IL Sn The 81 act Sei in SELF 4.
defense, then he is to be judged,-his defense
Is to be judged by the facts, as they appeared
to him at the time OF the act. Just so in rela.
tiCn to one labOrtng under Of
mind. If while under the influence OF q men,
tai delusion q person Of unsound mind takes
the life of another, and it is made to appear to
the jury that 1t appeared to him that IL was
necessary to saw his " life, 1t is excusable.
ting the homicide, acted under an uncontrsHkble i'm
pulse which was the result Of unseundness of MUD,
they must acquit him.
I charge you that Is law.
. 5. Unless the Jury believe Ferguson was capable
OF acting from an evil intent and thu. buch evil intent
had arisen in bis mind bufore the oct was committed
they should acquit.
I charge you that Is law; yes, I will charge
you that as law.
6. The jury are to consider the state OF Fergusnn's
mind at the time the homicide was committed, and II
the evidence produced establishes the fact that his
brain was diseased he should he acquitted.
cannot charge you that, and for the simple
reason that 1t IL not every mental disease that
exenlpts one accused of crime from liability.
It Is not simply mental unsoundness thai ex-
empts one accused Of the act, but it Is q certain
state and condition OF mental ~unsoundness
that has that effect, which I Will state to you
hereafter.
Z. There is no legal test Of insanity, but it is .
question Of fact to be decided by the Jury upon all
the evidence In the case as to the soundness or IN.
soundness Of Fergusons mind at the time OF the
homicide.
Well. I might not charge you that upon the
ground that 1t does not relate to his case, be-
cause as I have already indicated TO you the
question here, the charge of murder, Is not so
much insanity, but the state and condition Of
the III Of the defendant at the time of The
act. Now our law books do lay down O test of
insanity, and that test Of insanity is a delu-
ton or haluc1nation, and that insanity may
exempt a man from his civil contract, but to
his criminal acts the law applies o particular
test Of mental ~unsoundnesS, and I will have
more to say TO you on that subject.
8 II the Jury think it probable that Ferguson's
mind, at the tune Of the homicide, was impaired by
epilepsy or by long continued and excessive drinking,
or by both, they must acquit.
1 cannot charge you that for the reason al
ready stated; that merely an impairment Of
mind without stating the degree of impair
ment and state and condition of the mind
does not relieve him from responsibility for
the charge.
8. Al,hoae h the law may presume malice from the