WPIC 18.15 Alibi

In State v. Adams, 81 Wn.2d 468, 503 P.2d 111 (1972), and State v. Kubicek, 81 Wn.2d 497, 502 P.2d 1190 (1972), the court found the challenged alibi instructions to be proper and in accordance with the law, but it concluded that no alibi instructions should be given in the future when requested by either the prosecution or the accused. The court stated in Adams that a set of general instructions adequately covers the law governing the trial and gives both parties ample scope to present their respective views as to alibi evidence without risking the introduction of possibly confusing judicial comments on the subject.

When the evidence focuses on the commission of a crime on a specific date and the defendant asserts an alibi, the instruction defining the elements of the crime should not contain the usual reference to an act “on or about” a certain date. The jury should be instructed that the State must prove that the act occurred on a specific date. This rule, however, is not inflexible. See State v. Pitts, 62 Wn.2d 294, 382 P.2d 508 (1963).