Valenti

The defendant was convicted of the crime of murder in the first degree and sentenced to life imprisonment. She appeals from the judgment and from an order denying her motion for a new trial.

There are three reasons assigned by appellant why the judgment should be reversed. They are: 1. That the court erred in permitting Esther Garcia, ten years old, to testify over the objection of the defense that she was incompetent; 2. That the corpus delicti was not sufficiently proven to warrant the admission in evidence of certain admissions and declarations of defendant; 3. That the evidence is not sufficient to support the verdict.

A Spanish girl ten years of age was called to the stand and questioned at considerable length concerning her understanding of the nature of the oath and the consequence attending the giving of false testimony. The trial judge finally determined that she was competent. And we are asked by appellant to declare this ruling erroneous, on the ground that some of the answers of the witness were conflicting, which counsel argues demonstrates her incompetency to receive and relate just impressions of the facts respecting which she was asked to testify, or to…