Opinion

Harger v. State

  • 665 P.2d 827
Court
Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma
Filed
Mar 2, 1983
Status
Published
Author
Brett
On the bench
Cornish, Bussey, Brett
Cited by
5 cases

The opinion

BRETT, Judge,

concurring in part, and dissenting in part.

I concur that appellant should stand convicted, but not for the crime of First Degree Murder. As I view the record, the prosecution failed to prove the element of malice aforethought required in First Degree Murder. I would modify the conviction to First Degree Manslaughter and modify his sentence to forty-five (45) years.

When appellant made his inculpatory admission, describing where the deceased’s body was located, he also stated before the Sheriff that “he didn’t mean to kill her.” (Tr. 58). The record reflects to me that the homicide occurred in the heat of passion resulting from what the deceased said to appellant during their argument. Therefore, I would modify the conviction to First Degree Manslaughter, and modify the sentence accordingly.

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.

A word about cookies

We need a few to keep you signed in and the library working. The rest help us see which pages people use and where they get stuck. They stay off unless you say yes.