Dave Bowden was tried under an indictment charging him with the offense of murder, and the jury trying the case returned a verdict of guilty, without recommendation. He was thereupon by the court sentenced to be hanged. A motion for a new trial was-made and overruled.
1. A. J. Walton, sheriff, testified as follows: “ I was sheriff at the time this man [the accused] was in my charge. There was no hope of reward held out to him at the time by me, or any one else, to make a statement to me. I asked him why he killed the woman, what the trouble was, and he gave me his pocket-book, with three checks, one for thirty dollars, one for ten, and one for eight dollars, that had been cashed by Cindy Jackson. And he said he had been giving her a good deal of money, and she had promised to meet him several times, and she never had done it, and he couldn’t let her treat him that way. And I think the next day I approached him again; and he told me he wouldn’t say anything else, he would wait and make his statement in the court-house. His mental condition seemed to be all right. Yes, he was locked up and in my charge and under my authority. When I told him to tell me what happened, if he hadn’t I wouldn’t have done anything to him. I
2. The testimony that the accused handed to the sheriff three checks, one for $30, one for $10, and one for. $8, that had been cashed by Cindy Jackson, the decedent, should not have been admitted over the objection that the three checks were the highest and best evidence, and that testimony in reference to them was inadmissible, as no ground for introducing secondary evidence had been laid. But we do not think that this evidence was of such materiality as requires the grant of a new trial, although it was of some materiality. The other evidence given in this connection, which was unobjectionable, shows, if credible, that the defendant claimed that he had been giving Cindy Jackson, the woman whom he killed, “ a good deal of money, and she promised to meet him several times and she never done it, and he could not let her treat him that way.” If the giving of the checks to the woman and her failure to comply with her promises of meeting the accused tended to show motive, motive of that character, as far as it could explain the homicide, was shown by the testimony which was perfectly competent, coming from the mouth of the same witness, that the accused “ had given her a good deal of money.”
3. The defendant in the case admitted the fact of the shooting and killing, but set up the defense that he did not have sufficient mental capacity to render him responsible for the act under tha
4. The court charged the jury further upon the subject of insanity and criminal responsibility: “ If a man has reason sufficient to distinguish between right and wrong in relation to a particular act about to be committed, and has sufficient mental capacity at the time to understand such act is wrong and in violation of the criminal laws of the land and he will be punished for the commission of such an act, then he would be criminally responsible for such an act; that is, the law does not say, except to give the jury the definition of where a man would be responsible, and where he would not be responsible. Although a man may have a weak intellect, although his mind may not be very strong, yet the law says that if ha has sufficient mental capacity to distinguish between right and wrong and to understand the act he is about to commit is against the criminal laws of the State of Georgia, and if he comprehends at the time that such act is wrong and against the laws of the State of Georgia, and if he commits an act of that kind he is liable to be
5. Error is assigned upon the charge of the court relating to confessions, upon the ground that there is no evidence authorizing a charge upon that subject. The sheriff of the county, A. J. Walton, testified: " I asked him about the killing, what caused the killing,. and why he killed the woman, and he said he had given her. a lot of money, and he gave me three checks, one for thirty dollars, one for ten dollars, and one for eight dollars, and he said she had promised to meet him several times and had never done it and he couldn’t stand to be swindled out of his money in such way. After I asked him, he made that statement to me voluntarily. I didn’t tell him it would be best for him to make it or hold out any inducement to him to make it. I didn’t make any threats against him; he just answered my questions voluntarily. . . He didn’t mention it until I asked him about it. He was in jail, and I had him locked up in a cage. I asked him why he did it, and he told me. . . I was sheriff at the time this man was in my charge. . .. I asked him why he killed the woman, and what the trouble was.” And this is followed by a statement which is substantially repetitious of the preceding answer of the accused to this question. The admissibility of this evidence has been ruled upon above; and it was held that it was admissible. With this evidence in, the court was authorized to charge upon the subject of confession. When the witness asked the defendant why he killed the woman, and he answered that he did it for certain reasons, stating them, this amounted to a confession. Jones v. State, 130 Ga. 274 (60 S. E. 840); Thompson v. State, 147 Ga. 745 (95 S. E. 292). It follows that a charge upon the subject of confession was proper; especially as it contained the usual caution that the jury would not consider the evidence unless they found that it was freely and voluntarily made, without being induced by another by the slightest hope of reward or the remotest fear of punishment.
7. There is some evidence to support the verdict.
Judgment affirmed.