Gleason

The defendant was convicted of murder in the first degree for having shot and killed one Cotton in the town of Bakersfield, and, having been sentenced to state prison for the term of his natural life, has appealed to this court.

In its instructions to the jury the court gave the following instruction at the request of the prosecution: “You are instructed that the people are not permitted to assail the character of a defendant on trial in a criminal ease until the defendant has himself put his character in issue by calling witnesses and offering evidence in its support; and, unless put in issue by the defendant, the people can in no way attack his character.”

The object of the prosecution in asking this instruction is not apparent. The evident effect of the instruction was, however, to suggest to the jury that, if the prosecution had had an opportunity to do so, they might possibly have shown that the defendant was not a man of good character, and to excuse their failure to make such showing upon the ground that he had not offered evidence in support of his character. The law assumes that a defendant who is upon trial for an offense has a fair character, and, unless evidence to…