holding that prosecutor’s comment that people sentenced to life imprisonment do not always spend the rest of their lives in jail was proper response to defense counsel’s factually misleading statements on commutations
How later courts described this case
- holding that prosecutor’s comment that people sentenced to life imprisonment do not always spend the rest of their lives in jail was proper response to defense counsel’s factually misleading statements on commutations
- finding factual similarities sufficient for admission of evidence of prior crimes demonstrating identity and common scheme
- similarities between murders of two drug dealers revealed a common scheme and defendant’s identity sufficient to consolidate cases for trial; defendant confessed to both murders as way to increase his influence in local drug trade, murders occurred three months apart, and both victims were shot execution-style above bars with similar if not the same weapon
- prosecutor’s statement that “people who are sentenced to life imprisonment do not often spend their entire life in jail” was fair response to inaccurate and misleading statement by defense counsel that commutation was statistically rare
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
McDERMOTT, Justice, dissenting.
I am obliged to dissent. I believe that under the facts here appellant was entitled to have the jury charged on the ancient juridical principle that since one is presumed innocent an inference which posits either guilt or innocence must be drawn in favor of the accused.
I am not persuaded beyond a reasonable doubt that its omission was harmless.