143 results for 'cat:"Jury" AND cat:"Murder"'.
J. Warren finds that the trial court properly convicted defendant of murder, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Defendant failed to show that the trial outcome was likely affected by the trial court's failure to instruct the jury on justification and no duty to retreat. The evidence supporting defendant's self-defense theory was weak. Defendant also failed to show that the trial court committed any error by failing to instruct the jury on accomplice corroboration. Defendant failed to show that his trial counsel's performance was deficient. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Supreme Court, Judge: Warren, Filed On: August 21, 2023, Case #: S23A0550, Categories: Ineffective Assistance, murder, jury Instructions
J. McMillian finds that the trial court properly convicted defendant of murder and a firearm offense. Sufficient evidence was presented to support defendant's convictions and the trial court did not commit any error in denying defendant's motion to exclude a potential juror who worked at the county jail where defendant was housed waiting for trial. The potential juror did not sit on the jury, therefore defendant cannot show he was harmed. Defendant failed to show that his trial counsel performed deficiently or that he was prejudiced by the alleged deficiencies. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Supreme Court, Judge: McMillian, Filed On: August 21, 2023, Case #: S23A0518, Categories: Ineffective Assistance, jury, murder
J. LaGrua finds that the trial court properly convicted defendant of murder and other offenses. The trial court correctly refused to instruct the jury on voluntary manslaughter because the evidence did not support the charge. There was no evidence of serious provocation which would have prompted a reasonable person to shoot and kill the victim. Affirmed.
Court: Georgia Supreme Court, Judge: LaGrua, Filed On: August 21, 2023, Case #: S23A0715, Categories: murder, jury Instructions
J. Jacobs finds that a lower court properly dismissed defendant's motion to strike a potential juror. Defendant, who was charged with first-degree murder for the shooting death of his girlfriend, argues that juror number eight, a nurse, should be disqualified for impartiality. However, the state presented sufficient evidence in court that juror number eight was able to participate at trial without bias. Affirmed.
Court: Arizona Court Of Appeals Division One, Judge: Jacobs, Filed On: August 18, 2023, Case #: 1 CA-CR 22-290, Categories: jury, murder
J. Kellum finds that the lower court properly convicted defendant of murder and sentenced him as a habitual felony offender to life imprisonment without parole. Defendant argues there was error in the denial of his motions to remove certain jurors for cause, but any error was harmless, as he used his peremptory strikes to remove the two jurors. Additionally, there was no error in his sentence under the Habitual Felony Offender Act. Affirmed.
Court: Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals, Judge: Kellum, Filed On: August 18, 2023, Case #: CR-2022-0789, Categories: jury, murder, Sentencing
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J. Kellum finds that the lower court properly convicted defendant of capital murder and sentenced him to death. Contrary to defendant's argument on appeal, there was no error in the denial of his motion for a change of venue, as he failed to establish that "he could not receive a fair and impartial trial in St. Clair County" due to the media coverage of the case. Also, there was no error in the method of voir dire. Affirmed.
Court: Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals, Judge: Kellum, Filed On: August 18, 2023, Case #: CR-21-0283, Categories: Death Penalty, jury, murder
J. Groban finds that the trial court should have provided a jury instruction on imperfect self-defense at defendant's murder trial since it was supported by substantial record evidence. To prove the malice element of murder, the state must show the absence of imperfect self-defense beyond a reasonable doubt. The failure to provide an imperfect self-defense instruction where it is required by the record is a violation of the federal Constitution. So, the appeals court should have applied the federal reasonable doubt standard, not California's reasonable probability standard, to evaluate whether defendant was prejudiced by the omission of the instruction at trial. Reversed.
Court: California Supreme Court, Judge: Groban, Filed On: August 17, 2023, Case #: S272237, Categories: murder, Self Defense, jury Instructions
J. Mumin finds that the trial court should not have given a jury a concurrent intent instruction on an attempted murder charge. The evidence does not support the theory that, in his effort to kill his primary target, defendant was trying to create a "kill zone" to kill all the police outside the door of the room where he was hiding. The number of shots defendant fired and the openness of his target area only show he had a conscious disregard for life, not a specific intent to kill. Reversed in part.
Court: California Supreme Court, Judge: Corrigan, Filed On: August 17, 2023, Case #: S271049, Categories: Intent, murder, jury Instructions
J. Soto finds a lower court ruled correctly in convicting defendant of murder. Defendant argued jurors were not given adequate instructions not to let “sympathy, prejudice, or bias” influence their verdict nor that they could convict defendant of the lesser charge of manslaughter, but defendant does not show why he needed such a “curative” jury instruction, and because there is no evidence of recklessness defendant, there is also no evidence that “if he was guilty, he was only guilty of manslaughter.” Affirmed.
Court: Texas Courts of Appeals, Judge: Soto, Filed On: August 15, 2023, Case #: 08-23-00040-CR, Categories: jury, murder, jury Instructions
J. Vargas finds the jury's decision to convict defendant on first-degree murder but acquit him on manslaughter and second-degree murder charges does not require reversal and a new trial. All of the elements of the first-degree charge were met; therefore, the jury's decision to acquit on other charges might have been the result of leniency or a mistake, but in either case, this court cannot speculate on its deliberations or ultimate verdicts. Affirmed.
Court: New Mexico Supreme Court, Judge: Vargas, Filed On: August 14, 2023, Case #: S-1-SC-38169, Categories: jury, murder
J. Zayas finds that while the jury found defendant not guilty of the firearm specifications within the attempted murder charge, the trial court properly denied defendant's motion to set aside the attempted murder conviction. Testimony he was hired to commit the murder alongside several others and evidence he burned his clothing after the crime was sufficient to support the conviction. While the guilty verdict may have been somewhat inconsistent, given the victim died from a gunshot wound and defendant was found to not have been in possession of a weapon, the inconsistency can be explained by compromise or leniency on the part of the jury. Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Court Of Appeals, Judge: Zayas, Filed On: August 9, 2023, Case #: 2023-Ohio-2742, Categories: Firearms, jury, murder
J. Hensal finds defendant was not prejudiced by the trial court's decision to wait to excuse an alternate juror who communicated with the victim's family on several occasions throughout the murder trial. The juror was dismissed with the other alternates when deliberations began and, therefore, could not have influenced the outcome of the trial. Meanwhile, defendant's murder conviction was supported by sufficient evidence that included two separate identifications of him as the shooter, testimony he had a strained relationship with the victim, and evidence he attempted to bribe a neighbor to not turn over surveillance footage to the police during their investigation. Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Court Of Appeals, Judge: Hensal, Filed On: August 9, 2023, Case #: 2023-Ohio-2759, Categories: Evidence, jury, murder
J. McCarty finds the lower court properly convicted defendant of attempted murder and possession of a firearm by a felon for shooting a man twice after a confrontation in a parking lot. Defendant was sentenced to 20 years for attempted murder, and 10 years for the firearms charge, to be served consecutively. Despite defendant's argument, the jury was properly instructed, and the instant court finds no fault in the lower court’s determination Affirmed.
Court: Mississippi Court Of Appeals, Judge: McCarty, Filed On: August 8, 2023, Case #: 2022-KA-00398-COA, Categories: Firearms, murder, jury Instructions
J. Westbrooks finds the lower court properly convicted defendant of first-degree murder and attempted murder, and sentenced him to life imprisonment plus a consecutive 25 years for the attempted murder. Defendant shot his wife and her four-year-old son, killing her; despite multiple gunshot wounds the child survived. Defendant argues he did not receive a fair trial because one of the jurors knew him. The lower court found they were acquaintances by way of the juror conducting church services in which defendant attended, but there was no relationship and the juror’s impartial judgment was not compromised. Affirmed.
Court: Mississippi Court Of Appeals, Judge: Westbrooks, Filed On: August 8, 2023, Case #: 2021-KA-00886-COA, Categories: jury, murder
J. Torbitzky finds that the lower court properly convicted defendant of murder despite not instructing the jury on the lesser offense of voluntary manslaughter. The jury specifically found that defendant deliberated before killing his roommates, even if this deliberation was brief, so defendant was not prejudiced by the jury instructions. Affirmed.
Court: Missouri Court Of Appeals, Judge: Torbitzky, Filed On: August 8, 2023, Case #: ED110472, Categories: murder, Manslaughter, jury Instructions
J. Eklund finds that defendant was not prejudiced by the comments of a prospective juror who claimed he knew of defendant and his family through past investigations made as a fire inspector. Not only was this juror dismissed for cause, but his comments were also vague in nature and did not imply any criminal conduct on the part of defendant. Meanwhile, DNA evidence of defendant on the gun and vehicle involved in the high-speed pursuit and shooting, as well as his admission he was in the car from which several shots were fired - one of which struck a police officer in the hand - was sufficient to convict him of all charges. Affirmed.
Court: Ohio Court Of Appeals, Judge: Eklund, Filed On: August 7, 2023, Case #: 2023-Ohio-2725, Categories: Dna, jury, murder
J. Bernstein finds the Court of Appeals improperly found that there was no prejudice to defendant, convicted of the murder of her boyfriend, by counsel’s failure to request a voluntary manslaughter instruction. After the couple broke up, the boyfriend reacted violently, and tried to run her over with her own van. Another individual drove defendant to a gas station to retrieve her van, where a second altercation with the boyfriend took place, resulting in defendant’s shooting and killing him. Though conflicting testimony existed at trial as to the sequence of events leading up to the shooting, there is a reasonable probability that counsel’s failure to instruct on manslaughter affected the outcome. Reversed and remanded.
Court: Michigan Supreme Court, Judge: Bernstein, Filed On: July 27, 2023, Case #: 164055, Categories: murder, Manslaughter, jury Instructions
J. Jenkins holds that the trial court jury instructions on first degree murder were in line with the Sanchez holding on substantial concurrent causation. Defendants participated in a gun battle in a crowded public place with the intent to kill their gang rivals. This satisfied the proximate cause element required to convict them of first degree murder for a bystander's death. And even though the bullet that killed the bystander was fired by their rival, their mental states in setting up the attack and firing wildly satisfied the mens rea element. Affirmed.
Court: California Supreme Court, Judge: Jenkins, Filed On: July 20, 2023, Case #: S260063, Categories: murder, jury Instructions
J. Anderson affirms the defendant's premeditated murder conviction but reverses his second-degree intentional murder conviction. The district court did not violate the defendant's right to confrontation by preventing defense counsel from telling the jury that a testifying codefendant had taken a plea agreement to avoid a mandatory life sentence, and while it may have erred by not identifying the codefendant as an accomplice in jury instructions, the error did not affect the defendant's substantial rights. As the district court's only error, this issue does not adequately support the defendant's cumulative-effect argument. The second-degree murder conviction, however, was entered in error because it is a lesser-included offense of first-degree murder. Affirmed in part.
Court: Minnesota Supreme Court, Judge: Anderson, Filed On: July 19, 2023, Case #: A22-0303, Categories: Confrontation, murder, jury Instructions
J. McKeig affirms the dismissal of the prisoner's second postconviction relief petition, which claimed ineffective assistance of appellate counsel and jury misconduct and sought to compel discovery. There is no reasonable probability, in light of overwhelming evidence that the prisoner killed his wife after searching for poisons and a hit man on the dark web, that the outcome of the prisoner's trial or appeals would have been different were it not for claimed errors. The prisoner also failed to meet his burden to show the need for a hearing on alleged jury misconduct. Affirmed.
Court: Minnesota Supreme Court, Judge: McKeig, Filed On: July 19, 2023, Case #: A22-1378, Categories: Ineffective Assistance, jury, murder
J. Golemon finds the trial court properly convicted defendant for capitally murdering multiple people, sentencing him to life in prison. Witnesses who were in the neighborhood at the time of the murders testified to overhearing arguments about drugs, hearing gunshots and seeing defendant with a gun. A patrol officer was in the area when he heard gunshots and logged the plates of a silver car containing two people leaving the residence where the murders occurred. He entered the residence to find multiple bodies. All evidence supports conviction, and though defendant says the court erred by not including presumptive language of self-defense in the jury charge, his defense counsel had informed the court that it was a strategic decision to not ask for the presumption language. Defendant has forfeited his right to complain of this on appeal. Affirmed.
Court: Texas Courts of Appeals, Judge: Golemon, Filed On: July 12, 2023, Case #: 09-22-00140-CR, Categories: Drug Offender, murder, jury Instructions
J. Raker agrees with the lower court’s decision that the jury should not have received voluntariness instructions in a trial where the court convicted a gun owner of murder. The gun owner, seen shooting a man on a closed circuit camera at a business, was positively identified and all other evidence supports this identification. There was also no evidence that the gun owner had been coerced by police into a false confession. Affirmed.
Court: The Appellate Court of Maryland, Judge: Raker, Filed On: July 7, 2023, Case #: 119248020, Categories: Firearms, murder, jury Instructions
J. Penzato finds that defendant was properly convicted and sentenced for second degree murder of a victim who was shot in the parking lot of a business during a drug buy. Defendant's Batson challenge fails since there is no proof of racial discrimination by the state in striking the potential juror. Also, defendant's evidentiary objections are without merit. Affirmed.
Court: Louisiana Court Of Appeal, Judge: Penzato, Filed On: July 6, 2023, Case #: 2022KA0940, Categories: Evidence, jury, murder
J. Thomson finds a lower court did not err in seating a juror for a murder trial following a post-verdict complaint by defendant regarding alleged bias by the juror. That juror acknowledged during voir dire that he had known a detective involved in the case “for twenty plus years” and admitted it might affect how he viewed evidence in the case, but defendant did not strike the juror despite having the option to do so and therefore waived this issue. Affirmed.
Court: New Mexico Supreme Court, Judge: Thomson, Filed On: July 6, 2023, Case #: S-1-SC-39057, Categories: Fair Trial, jury, murder
J. Shea finds that the district court properly denied defendant's request for a jury instruction on the lesser-included offense of mitigated deliberate homicide because his only legal theory was acquittal based on his argument that he was out of town and his wife killed their roommate. However, there was insufficient evidence that his roommate's truck which he sold after his death was worth more than $1,500, as required to support his conviction for felony deceptive practices. Reversed in part.
Court: Montana Supreme Court, Judge: Shea, Filed On: July 5, 2023, Case #: DA 20-0243, Categories: Evidence, murder, jury Instructions