Hunter v. State, No. 689-82
| Court | Court of Appeals of Texas. Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas |
| Writing for the Court | MILLER |
| Citation | 647 S.W.2d 657 |
| Docket Number | No. 689-82 |
| Decision Date | 23 March 1983 |
| Parties | Reginald HUNTER, Appellant, v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee. |
Page 657
v.
The STATE of Texas, Appellee.
En Banc.
Bruce Anton, Dallas, for appellant.
Henry Wade, Dist. Atty., R.K. Weaver, Mike Wilson and Royce West, Asst. Dist. Attys., Dallas, Robert Huttash, State's Atty. and Alfred Walker, Asst. State's Atty., Austin, for the State.
Before the court en banc.
OPINION ON APPELLANT'S PETITION FOR DISCRETIONARY REVIEW
MILLER, Judge.
Appellant was found guilty of murder after a jury trial and was sentenced to fifteen years in prison. Proper requests for jury charges on criminally negligent homicide and involuntary manslaughter were
Page 658
overruled by the trial court. Appellant urges two grounds of error: first, the trial court erred in refusing to charge the jury on criminally negligent homicide; second, the trial court erred in refusing to charge the jury on involuntary manslaughter. We granted appellant's petition for discretionary review to determine whether the court of appeals erred in upholding the trial court's refusal to give the requested charges.At trial, appellant testified to the following:
"Q And did you pull the trigger on the gun when the gun discharged?
"A I did not pull the trigger.
"Q What were you doing when you swung your arm over the back seat with the gun in your hand? What was your intention?
"A Well, I was intending on just trying to make her hush, really. A matter of a second--just a big 'pow.'
"Q How were you going to make her hush?
"A Well, it's the only way that we could, you know, communicate because I had taken her back home the week before and I was just really intending on making her hush so I could take her back home.
"Q In order to make her hush were you going to shoot her?
"A No, I wasn't going to shoot her.
"Q Were you going to hit her?
"A I wasn't intending on it.
"Q And to this day do you know why the gun went off?
"A No, sir, I don't.
* * *
* * *
CROSS-EXAMINATION
"Q Have you fired this gun before July the 30th, of 1980?
"A Never ever. I didn't even know if it would shoot.
* * *
* * *
"Q Mr. Hunter, I just have really one question for you. Before you turned your hand toward the back seat with the gun did you cock this gun?
"A No.
"Q Do you know if the gun was cocked when you pointed it at the back seat?
"A No, I didn't.
* * *
* * *
"Q And what did you say you were going to do with the gun?
"A I was just intending on just scaring her or something so she would hush until I got her back to Tyler.
"Q Did you point the gun at her?
"A I did not point the gun at her. I was still looking straight ahead.
"Q You just were driving the car looking ahead and swung the gun around?
"A Yes, sir.
The general rule concerning the required submission of jury charges is that when the evidence from any source raises an issue of a lesser included offense, and there is testimony that, if guilty at all, the defendant is only guilty of the lesser included offense, then the charge on the lesser included offense must be submitted to the jury, assuming the charge is properly requested or its omission properly objected to. Simpkins v. State, 590 S.W.2d 129, 132 (Tex.Cr.App.1979), and cases cited therein; Watson v. State, 605 S.W.2d 877 (Tex.Cr.App.1979). Moreover, a defendant's own testimony is sufficient to raise the issue. Campbell v. State, 614 S.W.2d 443 (Tex.Cr.App.1981); Jackson v. State, 548 S.W.2d 685 (Tex.Cr.App.1977).
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Tenner v. State, No. 2-86-285-CR
...and whether there is testimony that, if guilty at all, the defendant is only guilty of the lesser-included offense. See Hunter v. State, 647 S.W.2d 657, 658 Texas Penal Code section 19.07(a) provides for the offense of criminally negligent homicide by stating that, "[a] person commits an of......
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Tompkins v. State, No. 68870
...offense. Also see Still v. State, 709 S.W.2d 658 (Tex.Cr.App.1986); Thomas v. State, 699 S.W.2d 845 (Tex.Cr.App.1985); Hunter v. State, 647 S.W.2d 657 (Tex.Cr.App.1983); Lewis v. State, 529 S.W.2d 550 Much of what we have stated above is also applicable to appellant's claim that the trial j......
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Rose v. Johnson, No. CIV. A. H-99-2535.
...18 F.3d at 1220; see, e.g., Posey, 966 S.W.2d at 60-61; Thomas v. State, 701 S.W.2d 653, 656 (Tex. Crim.App.1985); Hunter v. State, 647 S.W.2d 657, 658 (Tex.Crim.App.1983); Boles v. State, 598 S.W.2d 274, 278 (Tex. Crim.App.1980); Hanner v. State, 572 S.W.2d 702, 707 (Tex.Crim.App.1978), ce......
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Molitor v. State, 3-89-247-CR
...122, 124 (Tex.Crim.App.1978). A defendant's own testimony is sufficient to raise the issue of a lesser included offense. Hunter v. State, 647 S.W.2d 657, 658 (Tex.Crim.App.1983). Further, "[t]he credibility of evidence and whether it is controverted or conflicts with other evidence in the c......
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Tenner v. State, No. 2-86-285-CR
...and whether there is testimony that, if guilty at all, the defendant is only guilty of the lesser-included offense. See Hunter v. State, 647 S.W.2d 657, 658 Texas Penal Code section 19.07(a) provides for the offense of criminally negligent homicide by stating that, "[a] person commits an of......
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Tompkins v. State, No. 68870
...offense. Also see Still v. State, 709 S.W.2d 658 (Tex.Cr.App.1986); Thomas v. State, 699 S.W.2d 845 (Tex.Cr.App.1985); Hunter v. State, 647 S.W.2d 657 (Tex.Cr.App.1983); Lewis v. State, 529 S.W.2d 550 Much of what we have stated above is also applicable to appellant's claim that the trial j......
-
Rose v. Johnson, No. CIV. A. H-99-2535.
...18 F.3d at 1220; see, e.g., Posey, 966 S.W.2d at 60-61; Thomas v. State, 701 S.W.2d 653, 656 (Tex. Crim.App.1985); Hunter v. State, 647 S.W.2d 657, 658 (Tex.Crim.App.1983); Boles v. State, 598 S.W.2d 274, 278 (Tex. Crim.App.1980); Hanner v. State, 572 S.W.2d 702, 707 (Tex.Crim.App.1978), ce......
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Molitor v. State, 3-89-247-CR
...122, 124 (Tex.Crim.App.1978). A defendant's own testimony is sufficient to raise the issue of a lesser included offense. Hunter v. State, 647 S.W.2d 657, 658 (Tex.Crim.App.1983). Further, "[t]he credibility of evidence and whether it is controverted or conflicts with other evidence in the c......