 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to DUI Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Darnell v. Commonwealth7/5/1988
Norma Jean Darnell was convicted by a jury of involuntary manslaughter in the death of a police officer and sentenced to eight years in prison. She appeals that conviction on two grounds: (1) the jury was improperly instructed on the elements of the offense, and (2) the evidence was insufficient to support a conviction.
In the early morning hours of April 12, 1986, appellant arrived at her home in Roanoke. She checked her answering machine and found sixteen messages from Darrell Hensley, a man she had dated twice. Appellant called Hensley and told him to stop calling her. About ten minutes later, a drunk and argumentative Hensley came through appellant's back door into her house. Appellant talked Hensley into going outside to talk; when he was out she slammed the door, locked it, and called the police. The dispatcher's tape revealed that appellant told the dispatcher to send someone right away or "he's gonna get hurt real bad." Hensley began hitting the door and yelling. Appellant got her .32 caliber
revolver from the bedroom, went back to the kitchen door, and cocked the pistol. She again called the police dispatcher who assured her that the police were at her house. She then looked through the peephole and confirmed that officers were present and had Hensley in custody. She opened the kitchen door, with the gun still in her hand and the barrel pointing outside. In her statements and at trial, she testified she was going outside to identify herself as the person who had telephoned the complaint. As she opened the screen door, the door hit her hand, causing the gun accidentally to discharge. A bullet hit one of the officers about seven feet away, fatally wounding him.
Appellant was arrested and tried for involuntary manslaughter. After the evidence was concluded, the judge instructed the jury as follows (Instruction No. 2):
The Commonwealth must prove beyond a reasonable doubt each of the following elements of [the crime of involuntary manslaughter]:
(1) That the defendant killed David W. Rickman; and
(2) That the killing, although unintended, was the direct result of negligence so great as to show a reckless disregard of human life; or that the killing, although unintended, was in the prosecution of some unlawful, but not felonious act, specifically reckless handling of a firearm so as to endanger the life, limb or property of any person.
He further informed the jury (Instruction No. 3) that the negligence involved in the crime must have been criminal negligence, and it must have been "reckless or wanton and of such a character as to show disregard of the safety of others under circumstances likely to cause injury or death."
Appellant's complaint with respect to the jury instructions relates solely to the portion of Instruction No. 2 regarding violation of a statute as grounds for involuntary manslaughter. She argues that under the instructions given, the jury could convict her of involuntary manslaughter if they found that she committed the unlawful act of reckless handling of a firearm and death resulted. Pointing out that not every violation of a statute can be a predicate for involuntary manslaughter because the violation must manifest a callous disregard for human life, she argues that the jury should have been instructed that the violation of the statute must have involved criminal negligence. Appellant notes that the instruction requiring a finding of criminal negligence did not vitiate the problem since under the instructions, no finding of negligence was necessa
Page 1 2 3 4 5 Virginia DUI Attorneys
DUI Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to DUI Lawyers in your area.
|
|