Jackson v. State

Morton, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. Having been convicted by a jury sitting in the Criminal Court of Baltimore of manslaughter, the appellant, Betty Ann Jackson, was sentenced to a term of ten years in the custody of the Commissioner of Correction. In this appeal it is contended that the trial judge improperly instructed the jury with respect to the law of self-defense. Ms. Jackson testified that in March, 1972, she and the victim, Charles Breedlove, were living together in Baltimore City, although he was married to another woman at the time.

On March 11, 1972, they moved to Florida where they took up residence with Breedlove’s mother. In June, 1972, Ms. Jackson returned to Baltimore and lived with her mother. Breedlove remained in Florida until August, 1972,. at which time Ms. Jackson sent him plane fare and he returned to Baltimore. Fie arrived on August 3, 1972, and moved into the home occupied by Ms. Jackson and her parents.

Ms. Jackson testified that since her mother objected to Breedlove living at their home, she told Breedlove on Monday, August 14, 1972, he could no longer stay in her house and gave him $200 with which to rent an apartment. The following evening (Tuesday) she encountered Breedlove’s wife in Little Willie’s Tavern where the wife was employed. After she advised Mrs. Breedlove that she had given him $200 to find an apartment, Mrs. Breedlove told her that Breedlove had spent the night and most of the day with her. Ms. Jackson testified that she then left the tavern and shortly thereafter ran into Breedlove as she approached her home.

A heated argument ensued, according to Ms. Jackson, during which Breedlove pulled out a pistol. As she “broke off and ran” into the street, she heard two shots and immediately thereafter she was hit by a passing automobile. ⁵²⁰ She was taken to the hospital by ambulance and while being treated, Breedlove arrived. Following her treatment they returned to her home where they spent the night together. She agreed, at Breedlove’s request, not to tell the police that Breedlove had threatened her with a pistol.

The next morning (Wednesday) Ms. Jackson returned to the hospital to pick up a prescription, but before doing so, she gave Breedlove an additional $90 to assist him further in finding an apartment. It turned out later that he used the money to buy heroin. She did not again encounter Breedlove until he arrived at her home about 2 a.m. Thursday morning.

She awakened to find him “undressing and he put this gun on the dresser. I asked him what was that for. He said not to worry about it, don’t touch it, it’s loaded. He stayed there that night, that’s all.” About 8 a.m. that morning her employer telephoned her that she need not report for work since her hand had been broken in the automobile accident.

She then went to a drug store “for pain pills and nerves.” Thereafter, she went to Little Willie’s Tavern and was surprised to find Mrs. Breedlove “because she works nights.” Mrs. Breedlove inquired about her broken hand and after Ms. Jackson had explained that it resulted from her difficulties with Breedlove, the wife offered to go back to the house with her to “kind of try to straighten myself [Ms. Jackson] out.” According to Ms. Jackson, “I told her I’d appreciate if she wouldcbecause my mother wanted Charles out of the house before she came back to work that day. * * * [S]he didn’t want him in the house. He refused to leave.” Upon their arrival at the Jackson home, they found Breedlove in the second floor bedroom. Ms. Jackson told him she knew “where he had been at” and “what happened to the money. I could not go along with this any longer.” Ms. Jackson stated that “Mrs. Breedlove then said we all should just settle this, doesn’t make any sense, you know, just get it straightened out.” Mrs. Breedlove then proceeded to leave.

Ms. Jackson then described what happened: “She [Mrs. Breedlove] started out, I turned around, went back to the ⁵²¹ room. I got back to the room, Charles Breedlove, he said wait a minute. When I got back to the room he sprung at me, jumped off the bed and he said what did you bring her for, that’s my wife. He said ‘Bitch, I’ll kill you.’ He jumped up, was jumping where the gun was at.

I grabbed the gun and I ran towards the hall. And I was trying to fire the shots out of the gun because I didn’t want him to shoot me with it and we tussled. Then the next thing I know he was on top of me on the floor and I was pushing him off, all this blood was on me. I remember I went downstairs, I went in the kitchen.

I was trying to call an ambulance. I called operator. In the meantime the front door was opened I guess where Mrs. Breedlove left out of the house and left the door opened. The police came in the house and ran up the steps.

I left out of the house the back way. I walked down the street, down through the alley. When I was in the course of walking I remember someone said she got a gun in her hand. I just let it go.” Ms. Jackson was immediately arrested and, according to the arresting officer, she announced: “I shot Charles but I didn’t mean to hurt him.” Mrs. Breedlove testified that as she was leaving the house she heard two gun shots and her husband screaming “Baby, she got me, she got me.” Mrs. Breedlove fled because she was afraid.

In the course of her testimony she said that Ms. Jackson told her that she had purchased a gun and planned to kill Breedlove. The autopsy report showed that Breedlove sustained three gun shot wounds and that the one in his abdomen was the cause of death. At the conclusion of the presentation of evidence, the trial judge instructed the jury. Appellant’s counsel took exception to the following portion of the instructions: “Now if in order to avoid possible injury the accused could