State v. Stay
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The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeals affirming Defendant's conviction of first-degree manslaughter, holding that the plain language of the first-degree manslaughter statute, Minn. Stat. 609.20(2), does not require the State to prove that death or great bodily harm was a reasonably foreseeable result when the underlying crime is fifth-degree assault.
On appeal, Defendant argued that the district court erred by failing to instruct the jury that a conviction for first-degree manslaughter required proof that he committed fifth-degree assault with such violence or force that great bodily harm or death was reasonably foreseeable. The court of appeals affirmed, concluding that the district court did not err in declining to so instruct the jury. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that section 609.20(2) does not require the State to prove that death or great bodily harm was a reasonably foreseeable result of the defendant's conduct when the underlying crime is fifth-degree assault.
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