Smith's Criminal Case Compendium
Table of Contents
State v. Bedford, 208 N.C. App. 414 (Dec. 7, 2010)
The trial court did not err by declining to instruct the jury on second-degree murder when no evidence negated the State’s evidence of first-degree murder. The defendant argued that the evidence showed that he killed the victim in a “frenzied, crack-fueled explosion” of a long-simmering “rage of jealousy.” However, the court noted, premeditation and deliberation do not imply a lack of passion, anger or emotion. Nor, the court noted, does the defendant’s possible drug intoxication support an inference that he did not premeditate and deliberate. The State presented evidence of the defendant’s conduct and statements before the killing, including threats towards the victim; ill-will and previous difficulties between the parties; lethal blows rendered after the victim had been felled and rendered helpless; the brutality of the killing; and the extreme nature and number of the victim’s wounds.