Jury instructions are reviewed in their entirety to determine if there was error. Even if the instructions are imperfect, no error is created if the instructions fairly present the issues to be tried and sufficiently protect the defendant's rights. The instructions must include all of the elements of the crime charged and must not exclude any material issues, defenses or theories if there is evidence to support them. At the outset, we note that a considerable portion of defendant's argument is premised on the erroneous legal conclusion that involuntary manslaughter is a specific intent crime. It is not.
Involuntary manslaughter is a general intent crime.
Involuntary manslaughter is a catch-all concept including all manslaughter not characterized as voluntary. Within the definition of involuntary manslaughter, there are three different theories, which can lead to a conviction. The theories are not mutually exclusive, and, in fact, multiple theories may be appropriate in certain circumstances. Datema, supra at 596. An unlawful act committed with the intent to injure or in a grossly negligent manner that proximately causes death is involuntary manslaughter.