State v. Gonzalez

The Supreme Court affirmed Defendant’s conviction for unintentional second-degree murder for shooting and killing his friend while they celebrated New Year’s Eve. The Court held (1) contrary to Defendant’s assertion, the statute defining unintentional second-degree murder is not unconstitutionally vague; (2) the evidence supported the jury’s finding that Defendant acted under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life; (3) the district court’s procedure when answering a jury question did not violate Defendant’s right to be present at every critical stage of the trial, and the court’s answer to the question was not an abuse of discretion; and (4) the court’s failure to give a limiting instruction about certain evidence was not in error. View "State v. Gonzalez" on Justia Law