State v. Blakeney, 408 A.2d 636, 137 Vt. 495 (Vt. 1979)

State v. Blakeney, 408 A.2d 636, 137 Vt. 495 (Vt. 1979)

It is the settled law of this state that "counsel should confine argument to the evidence of the case and inferences properly drawn from it, and must avoid appealing to the prejudice of the jury." State v. Lapham, 135 Vt. 393, 406, 377 A.2d 249, 257 (1977). Nor should counsel play on the jury's sympathy or seek to inflame their passions. Id. at 407, 377 A.2d at 257. In the proper case, such conduct requires reversal. Id. See also Woodmansee v. Stoneman, 133 Vt. 449, 344 A.2d 26 (1975); State v. Kelly, 131 Vt. 358, 306 A.2d 89 (1973).

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