Jones

The defendant was charged with the murder of his wife. He was convicted of manslaughter. On appeal he contends that he shot his wife in an effort to protect her chastity by shooting at her inebriated companion while they were fleeing from his presence after a drunken debauch in which all three individuals participated.

It is asserted the evidence fails to support the judgment; that the court erred in refusing to give certain instructions to the jury which were offered by the defense; that a dying declaration of the deceased was received in evidence without preliminary proof that it was made in extremis, and that the district attorney was guilty of prejudicial misconduct in stating to the jury in his closing argument that he believed the defendant was guilty of murder.

The defendant and his wife were living in the Mariposa school building near Grass Valley in Nevada County. In the afternoon of Sunday, the twenty-second day of August, 1932, an associate by the name of Edward Ryan appeared and spent the afternoon and part of the night drinking liquor with them. They were well acquainted, having previously picked fruit together. Ryan brought a bottle of whisky with him. .Several…