Opinion ID: 1058311
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 57

Heading: XXXVIII, XXXIX and XL. Jury Charge of Mitigating Factors

Text: Appellant contends that the trial court erred in charging the jury as to mitigating factors in three respects. First, he contends that the trial court erred in refusing to charge the jury on the statutory mitigator set forth in Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-13-204(j)(6), which provides that the defendant acted under extreme duress or under the substantial domination of another person. Appellant contends that his delusions caused him to believe he was acting under the control of government agents and, as a result, the substantial domination mitigator should have been charged. There is no authoritative support for appellant's contention. Moreover, appellant's mental illnesses were addressed in the statutory and non-statutory mitigators charged to the jury. Next, appellant contends that the trial court erred by failing to charge the non-statutory mitigators in the same affirmative manner as the statutory mitigators. Basically, appellant attacks the non-statutory mitigators because they were not in the same sentence structure as the statutory mitigators. The charge the trial court gave complies with the non-statutory instructions approved by the Supreme Court in Odom, 928 S.W.2d at 31-32, and State v. Hodges, 944 S.W.2d 346, 352 (Tenn.1997). This issue is without merit. Finally, appellant contends that the trial court should have charged the catch-all mitigator set forth in Tennessee Code Annotated section 39-13-204(j)(9). Appellant did not, however, raise this issue at trial or in his motion for new trial. Failure to make a contemporaneous objection constitutes a waiver of the issue. See Thornton, 10 S.W.3d at 234 (citing Tenn. R.App. P. 36(a)); Green, 947 S.W.2d at 188; Little, 854 S.W.2d at 651. Moreover, failure to raise issues concerning jury instructions in a motion for new trial constitutes a waiver of such issues for purposes of appeal. Tenn. R.App. P. (3)(e); Tenn. R.App. P. 36(a). Notwithstanding appellant's failure to object or raise the issue in a motion for new trial, he contends that the trial court's failure to charge the catch-all mitigator constitutes plain error and should be reviewed by this court. See Tenn. R.Crim. P. 52(b); State v. Ogle, 666 S.W.2d 58 (Tenn.1984). Plain error exists where the error affects a substantial right of the defendant and strikes at the very fairness or integrity of the trial. Tenn. R.Crim. P. 52(b); State v. Wooden, 658 S.W.2d 553, 559 (Tenn.Crim.App.1983). The failure to charge the catch-all statutory mitigator does not strike at the very fairness or integrity of the trial and, therefore, does not constitute plain error. This issue is without merit.