felony murder
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Colorado Supreme Court upholds new trial for teen convicted of felony murder
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The Colorado Supreme Court ordered a new trial for an Aurora teenager on Monday, agreeing a defendant need not admit to committing an underlying offense to assert a defense to the more serious crime of felony murder. Felony murder is a unique offense, in which a defendant is guilty if he participates in certain crimes, such as…
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Colorado justices weigh unique defense to murder for non-triggermen
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Some members of the Colorado Supreme Court on Wednesday signaled their agreement with the notion that a defendant need not admit to committing an underlying offense in order to assert a defense to the more serious crime of felony murder. Felony murder is a unique offense, in which a defendant is guilty if he participates in…
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Colorado justices decline to find life sentences unconstitutional for non-triggermen
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A life sentence without parole does not violate the constitutional prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment for defendants who did not kill the victim personally, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday. Prior to 2021, life without parole was the punishment for those convicted of felony murder. A defendant is guilty of felony murder if…
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El Paso County felony murder conviction overturned after appeals court cites numerous errors
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Colorado’s second-highest court last month ordered a new trial for a woman convicted of felony murder in El Paso County, finding multiple errors that were not individually damaging compromised the fairness of her trial when taken together. Felony murder does not require that a person kill the victim themselves. Instead, a defendant can be guilty…
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Colorado’s justices hesitant to find lifetime sentences unconstitutional for felony murder
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Members of the Colorado Supreme Court on Monday gave an unenthusiastic reception to the idea that defendants currently serving life without the possibility of parole for felony murder are subject to cruel and unusual or “grossly disproportionate” sentences. Felony murder does not require that a person kill the victim themselves. Instead, a defendant can be…
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As Colorado Supreme Court weighs life without parole for felony murder, ex-lawmaker casts doubt on state’s argument
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As the Colorado Supreme Court sits down on Monday to decide whether defendants convicted of felony murder prior to 2021 should receive new sentences less severe than life without the possibility of parole, a key legislative change will play a prominent role in the legal analysis. However, according to the lawmaker who led the effort…
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Colorado appeals court orders new trial in Centennial murder case due to judge’s error
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An Arapahoe County judge refused to issue a key jury instruction in a high-profile murder trial, which lowered the prosecution’s burden of proof and prompted Colorado’s second-highest court to overturn the defendant’s conviction last month. Lloyd Chavez IV, a student at Cherokee Trail High School, died in May 2019 after four teenagers attempted to rob…
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Colorado Supreme Court to decide whether life without parole for non-triggerman is constitutional
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The Colorado Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will consider whether it is unconstitutional for a defendant to serve a sentence of life without parole for murder when he was not the one who caused the victim’s death. The case out of El Paso County implicates Colorado’s “felony murder” law, which, until recently, provided…
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Appeals court upholds lifetime sentence for non-triggerman in Colorado Springs murder
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It does not violate the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment to sentence an adult to life in prison without parole for a death they did not cause, Colorado’s second-highest court has ruled. Wayne Sellers IV challenged his sentence, the most severe punishment authorized under Colorado law, for the crime of felony murder.…
