Shepard v. United States
Facts
The Government introduced testimony from the wife's nurse that, while ill in bed, the wife identified a bottle of whiskey she had drunk before collapsing, said its smell and taste were strange, asked whether enough remained to test for poison, and added, "Dr. Shepard has poisoned me." The statement was first struck, then reintroduced after the nurse testified that the wife had said she was not going to get well and was going to die. At the time of the statement, however, her condition had apparently improved, her speech was rational, her physicians did not think she was dangerously ill, and poison had not yet been diagnosed. The defense had also introduced earlier statements by the wife suggesting weariness of life and possible suicidal intent.
Issue
Was the wife's accusation against her husband admissible either as a dying declaration or, alternatively, as evidence of her state of mind to rebut the defense suggestion of suicide? If not, did its admission require reversal?
Rule
To qualify as a dying declaration, the declarant must speak without hope of recovery and in the shadow of impending death; fear or belief that death may come is not enough, and the declarant's hopeless expectation must be shown by evidence rather than conjecture. Declarations of state of mind may be admitted to show the declarant's then-existing feelings or intent, but not to prove a past act, especially an act committed by someone other than the declarant, where the hearsay use would overwhelm any limited mental-state relevance.
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