State v. Stevens
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The Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the superior court convicting Defendant of one count of voluntary manslaughter, holding that there was no error in the proceedings below.
On appeal, Defendant argued that the jury erroneously rejected his claim of self-defense when it returned a verdict of guilty of voluntary manslaughter. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) in its role as fact-finder, the jury was free to reject Defendant's claim of self-defense; and (2) because this issue was never before the trial justice in the context of a motion for a new trial or a motion for judgment of acquittal, the trial justice did not weigh the evidence or pass upon the credibility of witnesses.
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