State
v. Schrader
Supreme
Court of Appeals of
172
Dressler,
pp. 229-231
Facts: The defendant stabbed the
victim 51 times. He claimed that he had acted
in self-defense. He was tried and
convicted of first-degree murder. He
appealed on the basis that the jury instruction in regard to “premeditation”
was an inaccurate statement of law in so far as it removed the alleged
requirement that there must be intent to kill for some finite period of time
before the act occurs.
Issue: What did the legislature
mean when it used the word “premeditated” in the murder statute?
Rule: No time is too short for
someone to someone to form the intent to commit murder.
Analysis: The court ruled that the
jury instruction is actually a correct statement of the law as it has been
construed in past cases.
Conclusion: The jury instruction was
found to be correct, and the verdict was upheld.
Notes
and Questions
1.