Writer She didn't pull the trigger, but it didn't matter. The legal theory under which Lisl Auman was convicted dates to British common law in the 12th century, which held people responsible for unintended deaths that occurred in the course of other serious crimes. If someone died of a heart attack during a robbery, for example, the robber was guilty of what was known as felony murder. England abolished felony murder in 1957, in part because of an outcry over the harsh punishment, including death, handed out to those who did not mean to kill. But in the United States, supporters argue that felony murder laws are useful for holding people accountable, and deterring crime.
Most states have basic statutes similar to Colorado's felony murder law.
He used Auman's case as an example, while emphasizing that he did not mean to take a stand on the specifics. But for that burglary, the death would not have occurred. Once a jury found Auman guilty of second-degree burglary, it didn't matter whether she had no intention of killing a police officer, under the law. Or if she didn't pull the trigger. Auman was handcuffed and in a police cruiser when officer Bruce VanderJagt was shot.