State v. Allbrooks, ___ N.C. App. ___, 808 S.E.2d 168 (Nov. 21, 2017)

In this case where the defendant was convicted of first-degree murder, the trial court did not err by failing to instruct the jury on the lesser included offense of voluntary manslaughter. On appeal, the defendant argued that he acted in the heat of passion. The defendant did not testify at trial, nor did any witness testify on his behalf. The State’s evidence indicated that the defendant was the initial aggressor and that he was the only one to make any threats or perform any violent acts. The court determined that there “simply [was] no evidence” to support heat of passion.