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State v. Bondurant3/20/1998
gravating circumstances versus mitigating circumstances, as qualitative, not quantitative.
e. Aggravating circumstances as limited by statute, versus mitigating circumstances as not limited by statute.
f. Statutory mitigating circumstances co-equal with non-statutory mitigating circumstances.
g. The different standards concerning the unanimity requirements in a determination of aggravating circumstances versus the determination of mitigating circumstances.
The defendant contends that the failure of the trial court and defense counsel to test the jurors' comprehension of these concepts was compounded by the trial court's failure to adequately instruct the jury at the sentencing phase. We disagree.
Again, the main purpose of voir dire is to ensure that a fair and impartial jury is impaneled. As discussed later in this opinion, many of the areas which the defendant claims should have been addressed during voir dire are subjects that our supreme court has rejected in the context of jury instructions. Furthermore, we have found that the trial court's instructions to the jury at the sentencing phase were correct, and it is presumed that the jury followed those instructions. Woods, 806 S.W.2d at 211. As noted in Gacy v. Welborn, 994 F.2d 305 (7th Cir. 1993), a defendant's "safety lies in the size of the jury and in cautions from the court, not in extra questions posed in advance of trial. A long series of probing questions can anesthetize or offend the panel rather than enlighten Judge and counsel." Id. at 315. This issue is without merit.
Accordingly, based on our review of the foregoing issues concerning the jury, we reject the defendant's contention that the cumulative effect of errors in selecting the jury requires the granting of a new trial or sentencing hearing.
IV. SUFFICIENCY OF THE EVIDENCE
The defendant contends that the evidence was insufficient to support a finding that he killed the victim in a premeditated and deliberate fashion rather than in a heated rage. We find that the evidence was sufficient to support the jury's verdict.
A jury verdict approved by the trial Judge accredits the state's witnesses and resolves all conflicts in favor of the state's theory. State v. Williams, 657 S.W.2d 405 (Tenn. 1983). On appeal, the state is entitled to the strongest legitimate view of the evidence and to all reasonable inferences which might be drawn therefrom. State v. Cabbage, 571 S.W.2d 832 (Tenn. 1978). Moreover, a guilty verdict removes the presumption of innocence which the appellant enjoyed at trial and raises a presumption of guilt on appeal. State v. Grace, 493 S.W.2d 474 (Tenn. 1973). The appellant has the burden of overcoming this presumption of guilt. Id.
In reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence, the relevant question for an appellate court is whether, after viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the prosecution, any rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S. Ct. 2781 (1979); State v. Duncan, 698 S.W.2d 63 (Tenn. 1985).
A crime may be established by direct evidence, circumstantial evidence, or a combination of the two. State v. Tharpe, 726 S.W.2d 896, 899-900 (Tenn. 1987). Here, the evidence was circumstantial. Before an accused may be convicted of a criminal offense based upon circumstantial evidence, the facts and the circumstances "must be so strong and cogent as to exclude every other reasonable hypotheses save the guilt of the defendant, and that beyond a reasonable doubt." Crawford, 225 Tenn. at 482, 470 S.W.2d at 612. "A web of guilt mu
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