George Shiras, Jr.

“ It must not change your verdict; for the experience of mankind, of all of us, teaches us that men reputed to be of good moral character in a community Unfortunately, sometimes, we find they are sadly different from that which they are reputed to be, and that they are committers of crime. Yet the good character goes to the jury with special force wherever the commission of the crime is doubtful. ”

“ It is proper to give the judge's own language:
'Some testimony has been given you touching the good character of the defendant. When a man is charged with crime, the courts of the United States permit this question of good character to be introduced to go to the jury. ”

“ People, 34 Ill. 516, was a case where the defendant was indicted for having received goods knowing them to have been stolen, and his counsel requested the trial judge to isntruct the jury that the evidence of the good character of the defendant for honesty should have great weight in determining as to his guilt or innocence. ”

“ There is a reasonable rule that, if the entire charge is excepted to, or a series of propositions contained in it is excepted to in gross, the exception cannot be sustained if there were a distinct proposition or instruction given that was sound. ”

“ If the court had told the jury that his good character should be taken into consideration by them, and was entitled to much weight, a reasonable doubt of the prisoner's guilt might have been raised, which would have resulted in his acquittal.'
Similar conclusions were reached in Com. v. Leonard, 140 Mass. 470, 4 N. E. 96; Heine v. Com., 91 Pa. St. 145; Remsen v. People, 43 N. Y. 6; People v. ”