People v. O’Neal

(Court opinion corrected 10/21/16.) Defendant was convicted, after jury trial, of 1st-degree murder based on felony murder. Defendant shot toward a van which was driving wrong way down a one-way street toward group of people gathered at a party. One of the bullets shot and killed a friend of Defendant who was sitting in a car across the street. Jury reduced conviction on counts for intentional murder and strong-probability murder to 2nd-degree murder based on mitigating factor of unreasonable self-defense; and jury also convicted Defendant of aggravated discharge of a firearm. Felony-murder conviction was predicated on offense of aggravated discharge of a firearm, which was Defendant's act of shooting at the van, which was same act causing death of victim, which jury found warranted only a 2nd-degree conviction. Thus, State cannot use felony murder to obtain 1st-degree murder conviction that it otherwise could not secure.(COBBS, concurring; McBRIDE, specially concurring.)