“There is no dispute that armed robbery falls within the meaning of the term ‘robbery’ in the felony-murder statute.”
How later courts described this case
- “There is no dispute that armed robbery falls within the meaning of the term ‘robbery’ in the felony-murder statute.”
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
If this opinion indicates that it is “FOR PUBLICATION,” it is subject to
revision until final publication in the Michigan Appeals Reports.
STATE OF MICHIGAN
COURT OF APPEALS
WILLIAM DOTHARD, UNPUBLISHED
January 23, 2025
Plaintiff-Appellant, 12:13 PM
v No. 369799
Chippewa Circuit Court
KINROSS CORRECTIONAL FACILITY LC No. 23-017499-AH
WARDEN,
Defendant-Appellee.
Before: M. J. KELLY, P.J., and LETICA and WALLACE, JJ.
PER CURIAM.
Plaintiff, William Dothard, appeals as of right the circuit court’s order denying his petition
for a writ of habeas corpus. Plaintiff contends that he is entitled to a writ of habeas corpus because
the circuit court issued its order denying his petition before he had an opportunity to reply to
defendant’s brief in opposition to the petition; because the circuit court improperly relied on the
facts of the criminal proceeding when it denied the petition; and because a radical defect in
jurisdiction exists because plaintiff was convicted of felony murder, which he asserts does not exist
under MCL 750.316. We affirm.
I. FACTS
In 2010, a Wayne County jury convicted plaintiff of first-degree felony murder,
MCL 750.316(1)(b), armed robbery, MCL 750.529, first-degree home invasion,
MCL 750.110a(2), and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, MCL 750.227b.
The trial court sentenced plaintiff to concurrent terms of life imprisonment for the felony-murder
conviction and 11 to 20 years’ imprisonment for the home invasion and robbery convictions to be
served consecutively to the mandatory two-year term of imprisonment for the felony-firearm
conviction. This Court affirmed defendant’s convictions on direct appeal. People v Dothard,
unpublished per curiam opinion of the Court of Appeals, issued June 26, 2012 (Docket
No. 299237).
This Court’s opinion set forth the relevant facts. Plaintiff’s convictions arose “from the
shooting death of 29-year-old Jamal Harper during the commission of a robbery.” Id. at 2. Four
-1-
others—Elesha Fullwood, Treisa Lyles, Dreshawn Grant, and Dione Wade—were also charged.
Id. Testimony established that “Wade and defendant Dothard both entered Harper’s house at
gunpoint and announced a robbery. Wade and defendant Dothard later brought Harper to the
basement of his house where he was eventually shot to death, apparently by Wade.” Id.
As relevant here, plaintiff argued on appeal that “there was insufficient evidence of malice
to support his felony-murder conviction.” Id. at 6. This Court held that there was sufficient
evidence to establish the elements of felony murder under an aiding-and-abetting theory. Id. at 7.
In 2013, plaintiff filed a pro se petition for a writ of habeas corpus in federal district court,
raising the same issues as those presented in his direct appeal and, in his reply, added new issues
not relevant to his argument in the present appeal. Dothard v MacLaren, unpublished opinion of
the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, issued February 3, 2015 (Case
No. 13-15217), p 2. The magistrate judge recommended denial of plaintiff’s petition, which the
district court adopted over plaintiff’s objection. Id. at 1.
On August 10, 2022, plaintiff filed a pro se petition for a writ of habeas corpus on
August 10, 2022. William Dothard v Mike Brown, Warden, Chippewa County Circuit Court Case
No. 2022-0016983-AH.1 In the 2022 case, the register of actions reflects that plaintiff filed a reply
to the defendant’s answer shortly before the circuit court denied the petition. And, in this 2023
case, respondent provided a copy of the circuit court’s November 7, 2022 opinion and order
denying plaintiff’s petition for a writ of habeas corpus in the 2022 case.2 Dothard v Brown,
unpublished order of the Chippewa County Circuit Court, entered November 7, 2022 (Case
No. 2022-0016983-AH). The circuit court in the 2022 case characterized the issue raised as
plaintiff “believes he was illegally convicted of common law felony murder[,] citing People v
Aaron, 409 Mich 672 (1980).” Id. at 1. The circuit court disagreed:
[Plaintiff’s] reliance of People v Aaron, 409 Mich 672 (1980)[,] is of no
consequence. There was no need to charge common law felony murder where the
statute, MCL 750.316, was used. MCL 750.316 is the statutory crime provision
identified in the judgment of sentence.
On December 15, 2022, plaintiff filed a pro se complaint for an original writ of habeas
corpus in this Court.3 Plaintiff referenced the 2022 circuit court habeas corpus case in the
complaint he filed in this Court, arguing that the trial court lacked subject matter jurisdiction,
“where the charge of Homicide Felony Murder (MCL 750.316[B]) is not a statutory charge for
which a person may be tried, convicted and sentenced,” citing People v Fountain, 71 Mich App
1
We take judicial notice of the register of actions in the 2022 case. See MRE 201(c) and (d).
2
The circuit court judge who denied the 2022 habeas corpus petition also denied the 2023 petition
for habeas corpus relief.
3
We take judicial notice of our own files and records. See MRE 201(c) and (d); Platt Convenience,
Inc v Ann Arbor, ___ Mich App ___; ___ NW2d ___ (Docket No. 359013), slip op at 20 n 20
(“[A] court may take judicial notice of its own files and records[.]”) (quotation marks and citation
omitted).
-2-
491; 248 NW2d 589 (1976), and People v Aaron, 409 Mich 672; 299 NW2d 304 (1980). The
defendant opposed plaintiff’s request for a writ and plaintiff filed a response. This Court denied
plaintiff’s complaint as well as his motion for reconsideration. Dothard v Kinross Correctional
Facility Warden, unpublished order of the Court of Appeals, entered May 17, 2023 (Docket
No. 364198), reh den, unpublished order of the Court of Appeals, entered June 30, 2023 (Docket
No. 364198).
On October 24, 2023, plaintiff filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus in the circuit court,
arguing that subject-matter jurisdiction was lacking because MCL 750.316 did not encompass a
conviction of first-degree murder on the basis of a theory of felony murder that had been abolished
by Michigan Supreme Court caselaw. Defendant filed a brief in opposition. The circuit court
entered an opinion and order denying and dismissing the petition, stating:
It appears that [Plaintiff] believe he was illegally convicted of common law
felony murder[,] citing People v Aaron, 409 Mich 672 (1980).
This Court has previously denied habeas corpus based on very similar
claims. The Court of Appeals follow[ed] suit and denied habeas as well. Now
[Plaintiff] adds in arguments that MCL 750.316 is not a valid statute.
* * *
Looking at the first-degree murder statute, it is clear that first degree murder
encompasses murder committed while robbing or attempting to rob. The
presentence report reflects that [plaintiff] arrived at the victim’s residence armed,
that the robbery was planned, and that he was actively participating in robbing the
victim of jewelry and clothes.
[Plaintiff’s] reliance on People v Aaron, 409 Mich 672 (1980)[,] is of no
consequence. There was no need to charge common law felony murder where the
statute, MCL 750.316, was used. MCL 750.316 is the statutory crime provision
identified in his judgment of sentence. Plaintiff was not prosecuted on common
law but upon a statute.
The jury in his criminal appeal, as factfinder, found that he violated
MCL 750.316 to arrive at first degree murder.
* * *
While [plaintiff] advances various legal theories to assert that his first-
degree murder statute is unconstitutional[,] [s]tatutes are presumed constitutional
unless the[ir] unconstitutionality is clearly apparent. Toll Northville Ltd v Twp of
Northville, 480 Mich 6, 11[; 743 NW2d 902] (2008). Contrary to [plaintiff’s]
-3-
arguments People v Aaron, supra, did not find Michigan’s first-degree murder
statute unconstitutional.
* * *
To the extent that Petitioner relies upon People v Washington, 508 Mich
107[; 972 NW2d 767] (2021), that case involved the ability of a circuit court to
correct a sentence after an appeal was filed and pending in the Court of Appeals.
The scenario in Washington is not present here.
Plaintiff subsequently filed a reply to the state’s brief in opposition, largely contending that
defendant either made irrelevant arguments or mischaracterized plaintiff’s arguments. Defendant
responded, arguing that the petition had been denied and that plaintiff’s request was moot.
Defendant and the circuit court apparently construed plaintiff’s reply as a motion for summary
disposition, and the circuit court issued another order denying the motion for summary disposition
as moot.
Plaintiff moved for reconsideration, contending that the circuit court improperly failed to
allow him an opportunity to make a reply and asking the circuit court to consider his reply before
making a ruling on the petition for habeas corpus. The circuit court denied the motion.
Plaintiff appeals.
II. STANDARD OF REVIEW
A prisoner’s right to file a complaint for a writ of habeas corpus is guaranteed by the
Michigan Constitution. Morales v Mich Parole Bd, 260 Mich App 29, 40; 676 NW2d 221 (2003),
citing Const 1963, art 1, § 12. Questions of constitutional law are reviewed de novo. People v
Dendel, 481 Mich 114, 124; 748 NW2d 859 (2008), amended 481 Mich 1201 (2008). To qualify
for habeas corpus relief under Michigan law, the plaintiff must identify a radical jurisdictional
defect that renders his conviction “absolutely void.” Moses v Dep’t of Corrections, 274 Mich App
481, 486; 736 NW2d 269 (2007). A challenge to a court’s jurisdiction is a question of law that we
review de novo. McKenzie v Dep’t of Corrections, 332 Mich App 289, 296; 957 NW2d 341
(2020). Issues of statutory interpretation are also reviewed de novo. People v Carter, 503 Mich
221, 226; 931 NW2d 566 (2019). Similarly, an appellate court reviews “de novo the proper
interpretation and application of court rules.” People v Traver, 502 Mich 23, 31; 917 NW2d 260
(2018).
III. DISCUSSION
Plaintiff first asserts that the circuit court erred by issuing its order denying the petition for
habeas corpus before plaintiff had filed a reply to defendant’s answer to the petition as permitted
under MCR 3.303(O). We conclude that even if the trial court erred, the error was harmless.
A civil action may be brought to obtain habeas corpus relief. MCR 3.301(A)(1)(b). The
general rules of civil procedure apply except as otherwise provided by MCR 3.300 et seq.,
governing extraordinary writs. MCR 3.301(A)(3). Upon the filing of a complaint for habeas
corpus, the court may issue a writ of habeas corpus, MCR 3.303(D)(1)(a), or it may issue an order
-4-
to show cause why the writ should not be issued, “unless it appears that the prisoner is not entitled
to relief[,]” MCR 3.303(D)(1)(b). “If an order to show cause is issued, it must be answered as
provided in subrule (N) . . . .” MCR 3.303(K)(2) (emphasis added). Subrule (N) provides, in
relevant part, “The defendant or person served must obey the writ or order to show cause or show
good cause for not doing so, and must answer the writ or order to show cause within the time
allowed.” Defendant’s “[f]ailure to file an answer is contempt.” MCR 3.303(N)(1). “In a reply
or at a hearing, the plaintiff or the prisoner may controvert the answer under oath, to show either
that the restraint is unlawful or that the prisoner is entitled to discharge.” MCR 3.303(O). The use
of the term “may” denotes permissive and not mandatory action by the plaintiff. See People v
Watkins, 491 Mich 450, 484; 818 NW2d 296 (2012).
In this case, plaintiff filed a complaint for habeas corpus on October 4, 2023. On
October 24, 2023, the court clerk issued a summons to defendant providing an opportunity to file
a written answer. On November 16, 2023, defendant filed a brief in opposition to the petition. On
November 27, 2023, the circuit court issued an opinion and order denying the petition without
holding a hearing. Plaintiff filed his reply on December 5, 2023.
A circuit court need not entertain responsive pleadings regarding a complaint for habeas
corpus if it determines that “it appears that the prisoner is not entitled to relief.” MCR 3.303(D)(1).
However, in this case defendant filed an answer to plaintiff’s complaint, notwithstanding that it
was presumably not required to do so because no order to show cause had been entered. See
MCR 3.303(N)(1) (requiring the defendant or person served to “answer the writ or order to show
cause within the time allowed” (emphasis added)). MCR 3.303(O) provides:
Answer May Be Controverted. In a reply or at a hearing, the plaintiff or the
prisoner may controvert the answer under oath, to show either that the restraint is
unlawful or that the prisoner is entitled to discharge. [Emphasis added.]
Because there is no court rule addressing the timing of a reply filing in a habeas action, the general
rule applies. MCR 3.301(A)(3). A party “may serve and file a reply [to an answer,
MCR 2.110(A)(6)] within 21 days after service of the pleading to which it is directed,”
MCR 2.108(A)(5). Therefore, plaintiff had 21 days after November 16, 2023, to file a reply in
which he could “controvert the answer under oath.” Nonetheless, we would not require the circuit
court wait on permissive, not mandatory action, by the plaintiff. Watkins, 491 Mich at 484.
Even assuming that the circuit court was required to await plaintiff’s reply before issuing
its decision,4 plaintiff has identified no prejudice arising from the entry of the order before receipt
of his reply. First, the substance of plaintiff’s arguments in reply was presented in his motion for
reconsideration. Plaintiff does not explain how the absence of his reply affected the circuit court’s
initial decision denying him relief or its subsequent decision denying reconsideration. See e.g.,
Lawrence v Mich Unemployment Ins Agency, 320 Mich App 422, 443-444; 906 NW2d 482 (2017).
Second, as will be discussed infra, plaintiff’s substantive argument for habeas corpus relief was
previously rejected by both the circuit court and this Court after plaintiff filed replies to the
4
Because plaintiff’s reply was not “under oath,” it presumably did not comply with
MCR 3.303(O).
-5-
defendant’s answers in those 2022 cases. Dothard, unpub order of the Court of Appeals, entered
May 17, 2023 (Docket No. 364198); Dothard v Brown, unpub order of the Chippewa County
Circuit Court, entered November 7, 2022 (Case No. 2022-016983-AH), slip op at 1, 3. Under the
circumstances, any error was harmless, and permitting the circuit court’s order to stand in this case
would not be “inconsistent with substantial justice.” MCR 2.613(A).
Plaintiff next contends that the trial court erred to the extent it relied on the “facts of the
criminal process” as a basis to deny the petition for habeas corpus. Review of the record does not
support plaintiff’s argument.
MCL 600.4316 provides: “Any court or judge empowered to grant the writ of habeas
corpus shall, upon proper application, grant the preliminary writ (or an order to show cause)
without delay, unless the party applying therefor is not entitled to the writ.”
Habeas corpus is a civil proceeding the main purpose of which is to cause the
release of persons illegally confined, to inquire into the authority of law by which
a person is deprived of his liberty. Application for the writ of habeas corpus is not
made in the criminal proceedings; it is made in a new and independent civil action
instituted to enforce a civil right, the right to liberty. [People v McCager, 367 Mich
116, 121; 116 NW2d 205 (1962) (citations omitted).]
As plaintiff correctly recognizes, although a habeas proceeding is a separate proceeding
from the underlying criminal proceeding, reference to the circumstances of the criminal proceeding
is necessary to determine whether an individual was deprived of their liberty pursuant to lawful
authority. See MCL 600.4310(3) (“An action for habeas corpus to inquire into the cause of
detention may not be brought by or on behalf of . . . [p]ersons convicted, or in execution, upon
legal process, civil or criminal . . . .”); Moses, 274 Mich at 485 (quotation marks and citation
omitted) (“The object of the writ of habeas corpus is to determine the legality of the restraint under
which a person is held.”). “But relief ‘is open to a convicted person in one narrow
instance, . . . when the convicting was without jurisdiction to try the defendant for the crime in
question.’ ” Id., quoting People v Price, 23 Mich App 663, 669-670; 179 NW2d 177 (1970). In
other words, to qualify for habeas corpus relief, the plaintiff must identify a radical jurisdictional
defect that renders his conviction “absolutely void.” Id. at 486, citing Price, 23 Mich App at 669-
670. “ ‘A radical defect in jurisdiction contemplates . . . an act or omission by state authorities
that clearly contravenes an express legal requirement in existence at the time of the act or
omission.’ ” Id., quoting Price, 23 Mich App at 671 (ellipsis in Moses).
Plaintiff argued that he was improperly convicted of first-degree felony murder when no
such theory was permitted under the applicable statute. The circuit court recited the facts of the
underlying criminal case in order to properly address plaintiff’s argument concerning his
entitlement to habeas corpus relief. The circuit court did not improperly rely on the facts of
plaintiff’s underlying criminal conduct as a basis for its holding that defendant was not entitled to
habeas corpus relief, as plaintiff seems to suggest. Nor is there any basis to conclude that the
circuit court was operating under a misconception concerning the procedural differences between
a civil habeas corpus proceeding and the underlying criminal proceeding. Thus, plaintiff is not
entitled to relief on this ground.
-6-
Finally, plaintiff contends that a radical defect in jurisdiction existed in his criminal
prosecution because he was charged with and convicted of felony murder, which plaintiff argues
is not a cognizable offense pursuant to Aaron. We disagree.
We begin by recognizing that both the circuit court and this Court previously rejected this
same substantive argument—that Michigan lacks a statute criminalizing felony murder—in the
2022 cases. Dothard, unpub order of the Court of Appeals, entered May 17, 2023 (Docket
No. 364198); Dothard v Brown, unpub order of the Chippewa County Circuit Court, entered
November 7, 2022 (Case No. 2022-016983-AH), slip op at 1, 3. This Court has held that the
prosecution may use collateral estoppel defensively to preclude litigation of jurisdictional
challenges to a prosecutor’s authority to prosecute an individual’s criminal case. Moses, 274 Mich
App at 504. Collateral estoppel, a rule of issue preclusion, “bars the relitigation of an issue in a
new action arising between the same parties or their privies when the earlier proceeding resulted
in a valid final judgment and the issue in question was actually and necessarily determined in that
prior proceeding.” Id. at 503 (quotation marks and citation omitted).
In this case, plaintiff raises the same argument that he did in his 2022 petition for a writ of
habeas corpus in the circuit court and in his complaint before this Court, i.e., Michigan does not
have a statute criminalizing felony murder. Valid, final orders were issued in those cases that
necessarily rejected plaintiff’s arguments. Dothard, unpub order of the Court of Appeals, entered
May 17, 2023 (Docket No. 364198); Dothard v Brown, unpub order of the Chippewa County
Circuit Court, entered November 7, 2022 (Case No. 2022-016983-AH), slip op at 1, 3. Plaintiff
named the same defendant—the warden of the Kinross Correctional Facility. The current action
is between the same parties and the issue—whether a radical defect in jurisdiction existed because
MCL 750.316 does not criminalize felony murder—was necessarily determined in those earlier
proceedings. See Moses, 274 Mich App at 503. Therefore, collateral estoppel precluded plaintiff
from again asserting this particular claim. Id.
And, even if collateral estoppel did not preclude plaintiff’s claim,5 we, like the circuit court,
determine that plaintiff is not entitled to habeas corpus relief.
In construing Const 1963, art VI, §13 and MCL 600.601, our Supreme Court “recognized
that circuit courts have subject-matter jurisdiction over felony cases.” Washington, 508 Mich at
121-122 (2021), citing People v Lown, 488 Mich 242, 268; 794 NW2d 9 (2011), and
MCR 6.008(B) (“The circuit court has jurisdiction over all felonies from the bindover from district
court unless otherwise provided by law.”)
5
We recognize that that circuit court’s opinion and order in this case states that it “previously
denied habeas corpus based on very similar claims” and that this Court “follow[ed] suit and denied
habeas as well.” However, the circuit court summarized plaintiff’s argument in the 2022 case and
this case and addressed it using identical language before adding further explanatory language (“It
is likely that [Plaintiff] does not understand that statutory first-degree murder, where there is a
felony associated with a murder, does not allow for every type of felony to be the basis for first[-]
degree murder.”).
-7-
Defendant was convicted of felony murder under MCL 750.316(1)(b), which provided that
first-degree murder included
[m]urder committed in the perpetration of, or attempt to perpetrate, arson, criminal
sexual conduct in the first, second, or third degree, child abuse in the first degree, a
major controlled substance offense, robbery, carjacking, breaking and entering of
a dwelling, home invasion in the first or second degree, larceny of any kind,
extortion, kidnapping, vulnerable adult abuse in the first or second degree under
section 145n, torture under section 85, [or] aggravated stalking under section 411i.6
[Emphasis added.]
First-degree felony murder, MCL 750.316(1)(b), is a felony punishable “by imprisonment for life”
without eligibility for parole. MCL 750.316(1) and MCL 791.234(6)(a). Therefore, the trial court
had jurisdiction over the criminal proceeding. See Washington, 508 Mich at 121-122; MCL 750.7;
MCL 761.1(f); MCR 6.008(B).
Plaintiff contends that Aaron held that Michigan lacked a statutory felony-murder rule and
that, in the absence of such a statute, there was a radical defect in jurisdiction. The issue in Aaron
was “whether Michigan has a felony murder rule which allows the element of malice required for
murder to be satisfied by the intent to commit the underlying felony” and what mens rea was
“required to support a conviction under Michigan’s first-degree murder statute.” Aaron, 409 Mich
at 687.
At the time Aaron was decided, MCL 750.316 provided:
Murder which is perpetrated by means of poison, lying in wait, or other
willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing, or which is committed in the
preparation, or attempt to perpetrate arson, criminal sexual conduct in the first or
third degree, robbery, breaking and entering of a dwelling, larceny of any kind,
extortion, or kidnapping, is murder in the first degree, and shall be punished by
imprisonment for life. [1980 PA 28; see also Aaron, 409 Mich at 717-718.]
Our Supreme Court held:
We conclude that Michigan has no statutory felony-murder rule which
allows the mental element of murder to be satisfied by proof of the intention to
commit the underlying felony. Today we exercise our role in the development of
the common law by abrogating the common-law felony-murder rule . . . .
The first-degree murder statute will continue to operate in that all murder committed in the
perpetration or attempted perpetration of the enumerated felonies will be elevated to first-degree
murder. Aaron, 409 Mich at 733-734. And, in addressing the required mens rea for murder, our
Supreme Court held that establishing malice requires proof of the defendant’s “intention to kill,
the intention to do great bodily harm, or the wanton and willful disregard of the likelihood that the
6
This was the version of MCL 750.316(1)(b) in effect in 2009.
-8-
natural tendency of [the] defendant’s behavior is to cause death or great bodily harm,” regardless
of “whether the murder occurs in the course of a felony or otherwise.” Id. at 728. Further, “[t]he
facts and circumstances involved in the perpetration of a felony may evidence an intent to kill, an
intent to cause great bodily harm, or a wanton and willful disregard of the likelihood that the natural
tendency of [the] defendant’s behavior is to cause death or great bodily harm[.]” Id. at 728-729.
The jury is charged with determining whether malice was established. Id. at 729. In sum, “[t]he
elements of felony murder are: (1) the killing of a human being, (2) with the intent to kill, to do
great bodily harm, or to create a very high risk of death or great bodily harm with knowledge that
death or great bodily harm was the probable result [i.e., malice], while committing, attempting to
commit or assisting in the commission of any of the felonies specifically enumerated in [the statute,
including armed robbery].” People v Carines, 460 Mich 750, 759; 597 NW2d 130 (1999)
(quotation marks and citation omitted).
In 1994, the felony-murder portion of MCL 750.316 was separately codified in
MCL 750.316(1)(b). 1994 PA 267, effective October 1, 1994. When a jury convicts a defendant
of first-degree murder premised on both premeditated murder, MCL 750.316(1)(a), and felony-
murder, MCL 750.316(1)(b), for the death of a single victim, the proper remedy is to modify the
defendant’s “judgment of conviction and sentence to specify that [the] defendant’s conviction is
for one count and one sentence of first-degree murder supported by two theories: premeditated
murder and felony murder.” People v Bigelow, 229 Mich App 218; 581 NW2d 744 (1998)
(quotation marks and citation omitted). Thus, under Michigan law, a murder conviction may be
supported by proof of premeditation or felony-murder or both. Id.
In this case, plaintiff acknowledges that the prosecution charged him on alternate theories
of first-degree premeditated murder and first-degree felony murder for the victim’s death. At the
preliminary examination, however, the examining magistrate dismissed the premeditated murder
count, but bound him over on felony murder. A jury later convicted plaintiff of felony murder
arising from the commission of a robbery, an enumerated felony. MCL 750.316(1)(b); Carines,
460 Mich at 768; People v Akins, 259 Mich App 545, 552; 675 NW2d 863 (2003) (“There is no
dispute that armed robbery falls within the meaning of the term ‘robbery’ in the felony-murder
statute.”). To the extent that Aaron applies at all, its central holding—that establishing a criminal
defendant’s mens rea to commit an underlying offense cannot also satisfy the malice requirement
for the purposes of the first-degree felony-murder statute—does not give rise to a radical defect in
jurisdiction in this case, where, as this Court has already determined, “there was sufficient evidence
of malice to support [plaintiff’s] felony-murder conviction.” Dothard, unpub op at 7.
Affirmed.
/s/ Michael J. Kelly
/s/ Anica Letica
/s/ Randy J. Wallace
-9-