Court Opinion

ID: 9562220
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 18:23:50.464128+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:17:15.168539
License: Public Domain

BURKE, J.
I dissent. Petitioner’s felonious assault was shown by abundant eyewitness testimony wholly independent of the statement used to impeach the witness Stanfill. That petitioner was not acting in self-defense when he commenced his sudden knife attack upon the victim Maxwell was clearly shown by the testimony of the bystanders.
I find no reasonable doubt that the jury’s consideration of the impeaching statement as substantive evidence was harmless under the application of the Chapman test. (Chapman v. California, 386 U.S. 18, 24 [17 L.Ed.2d 705, 710, 87 S.Ct. 824].)
McComb, J., concurred.